


Trust In Me

by kimmyiewrites (arosetosomeone)



Series: Screw the Labels [2]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda (Broadway Cast) RPF
Genre: College, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Funny girl, Les Mis - Freeform, Music, Musical References, Series, Slow Burn, book two, hello dolly, musical theatre, rent - Freeform, second book, track
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-27
Updated: 2018-12-18
Packaged: 2019-07-03 10:14:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 24,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15816828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arosetosomeone/pseuds/kimmyiewrites
Summary: College sees the trio split up. Will the distance make the heart grow fonder or will it make it easier to keep emotions at bay? While trying to please both the actor and the musician inside her, Kathryn begins to follow her dreams and learns along the way that on stage chemistry doesn't always translate off stage.





	1. i

**Author's Note:**

> And here is part two of the Screw the Labels series! This story will update every Sunday and Thursday so be on the look out for that! I promise I'll try to be better about properly updating everything as I update the story across the other platforms I'm publishing this story on. I can't wait to hear what you think. Much love!

There was noise all around her, people all around her and yet she felt utterly and completely alone as she walked to her first college class. Why they thought having music theory at 8 a.m. was a good idea, she didn’t know but here she was. Being by herself was taking some time to get used to since the past four years she always had Daveed or Rafael there. 

Her roommate was also from California but she wasn’t from the Bay Area. She was from a small town in the southern part of the state. The two got along well enough but it was more of a cordial relationship more than anything. They were just too opposite and it had nothing to do with coming from different regions of the same state. 

Kathryn had always considered herself messy, it just a thing that came with being an artist but her roommate was on something else. When Kathryn was the more clean one, she knew that there was going to be a problem. There were other differences that came up in the few days that they were there before classes officially started but both girls seemed to remain respectful of each other’s space. Kathryn just hoped that it remained that way throughout the year. 

Even though Daveed was an hour and a half away it still felt like a world away. Not to mention how far away Rafael felt. He and his girlfriend had broken up at the end of the summer and even though he promised her that he was going to be fine before she got on her flight to head to Connecticut, she still worried. He was staying in the Bay Area after all. 

After class, Kathryn walked by some of the practice rooms. In one of the rooms was a girl sitting at the piano. Her head was down on her arms that were pressing down on the keys. It looked like she had been like that for some time. Kathryn knocked on the door, wanting to at least try and make the other girl feel better. 

The girl jumped up and spun around when she heard the knock. While the rooms were sound proof, she was still able to hear everyone that passed by. She hadn’t expected anyone to stop.

“Can I come in?” Kathryn asked, motioning her request in case the other girl couldn’t hear her.

The ebony haired girl smiled and nodded. “Do you need the room?” She asked, figuring that was why the blonde knocked.

Kathryn shook her head. “Oh, no. I just saw you with your head down and thought you could use a friend. Piano can be the worse.”

“You play?” The girl’s dark brown eyes lit up. Her music classes didn’t start until later in the day and the people she had met so far weren’t musically inclined. 

“Yeah, so I knew the look of defeat when I saw it. What are you working on?” Kathryn asked, pulling up a chair and setting her bag down. 

“So I’ve been playing since I was a kid but they wanted me to play this piece to skip ahead to the more advanced piano classes and it’s just the worst.” She rolled her eyes as she turned to hand the sheet music to the other girl. 

When Kathryn saw the piece her eyes lit up in recognition. “They gave me this piece too! I’ve been bugging my roommate by practicing in the room instead of in here. What’s giving you trouble?”

“It’s these stupid sixteenth notes. It’s like I can’t move my fingers fast enough and I get behind with the metronome.” She groaned, taking the sheet music back. 

“Have you ever tried playing air piano first?” Kathryn asked.

The girl gave her a confused look. “Air piano?”

“Yeah. You tap the song out but with like the right finger moments. Then once you feel like you’ve got the hang of that you take it to the keys. It usually helps because I then can figure out different finger patterns in case that’s what’s tripping me up.” Kathryn further explained. “But I’d also say it’s time for a break. So wanna go grab a bagel or something?”

The girl smiled. She really liked this other girl already. “A bagel sounds really good right now. I’m Ashley, by the way.” She stuck out her hand with a smile.

Kathryn took it, returning the smile easily. “I’m Kat.”

“Well, I’m definitely going to have to give your trick a try. Thanks for stopping.” Ashley smiled as she packed her things back into her bag. 

“No problem.” Kathryn smiled as she shouldered her bag and opened the door so they could make their way to the coffee shop in the library.

On their way there, they learned what majors they had declared, where they were from, and other basics. Ashley was actually from Hartford. She was a music education major which Kathryn found great respect for. “I still can’t get over that you came all this way to school. You had Berkeley and UCLA in your backyard.” Ashley shook her head in awe. 

Kathryn laughed as they waited for their bagel to be made. “My aunt teaches at Berkeley so I definitely couldn’t go there. Then I felt like LA wasn’t far enough away from my parents. I’m in awe of you. How you could be a hop, skip, and a jump away from your home amazes me.”

“Honestly, I was nervous about leaving my family but I also really want to be a music teacher so here I am. I’m just going to try my best not to go home every weekend.” Ashley laughed. 

“Maybe you could show me around then? I really haven’t gone much further than campus.” Kathryn suggested as they grabbed their bagels from the small bar after their names were called.

Ashley grinned, excited about the idea. “Oh my gosh, really? I’d love to.”

Both girls traded phone numbers, excited to have made a new friend. Soon it was like they were attached at the hip. They often practiced together, offering any tips to help each other out when they got to tough spots. Ashley had even offered to help Kathryn with her songs in exchange for help with music theory. Kathryn happily agreed so that she could focus solely on her voice instead of trying to learn how to play the accompaniment. 

“How am I supposed to be a music teacher if I can’t even get music theory?” Ashley asked one day during their study session. Kathryn was sprawled out on her bed while Ashley sat at Kathryn’s desk.

“Hey, you’ve got this. Besides you’ve helped me out with my repertoire this year far more than my actual vocal professor.” Kathryn encouraged.

“That’s just because she doesn’t know how to get through to your stubborn self. Have you told her that you’ve done musical theatre and choir? Maybe then she’ll be able to tell you how not to strain your voice.” Ashley gave her a pointed look. 

“Or maybe it’s because I’m not meant to be Christine. Now stop pointing out my flaws and let’s get working on these inverted chords. Did you ever do them in your chord progressions practice?” Kathryn changed the subject, going back to what they were working on, not wanting to discuss her growing distaste to sing more classical pieces. 

“I mean I do this sometimes.” Ashley turned towards Kathryn’s keyboard and played a chord progression with inverted chords thrown in. 

Kathryn hopped up with a grin. “That’s it! What you just played is what Doctor Patt was talking about.” She then launched into the explanation of the building of the chords and showed them to her on the piano and how to resolve them which was what their test was going to be on in a couple of days. 

When it seemed to click for Ashley and they were able to get through their study guide, they shared a high five before going to the cafeteria to celebrate with ice cream. “Are you auditioning for the spring musical?” Ashley asked as they scanned their school id cards to pay for their meal. 

Kathryn shook her head. “I didn’t realize non majors could. Are you? You didn’t tell me you also act.”

“Oh, lord no. I’m auditioning to be in the orchestra but you Miss Hates To Sing Arias should definitely audition. They’re doing Funny Girl.” Ashley explained, walking with Kathryn over to the ice cream machine. 

“I’ll think about it.” 

“Kat, why are you even still thinking about this? You should audition. The worst they can tell you is no.” Daveed pointed out as he stared at his best friend incredulously. He couldn’t understand why she was being so apprehensive about auditioning. 

It was fall break and Kathryn had come to Rhode Island to stay with him for the week. Their reunion at the bus station had been one for the books. They hadn’t seen each other in what felt like years when in actuality, it was only just a couple of months. 

“Because this isn’t like highschool, Diggs. These people auditioning now are wanting to do this for the rest of their lives.” Kathryn tried to explain. This audition felt like it had higher stakes then the ones in high school.

Daveed rolled his eyes. “And what is it that you want to do for the rest of your life, Kat?”

“Perform.” She mumbled.

“I’m sorry, what was that?” He raised his eyebrow, a slight smirk tugging up the corner of his lips. 

Kathryn groaned and leaned back in the chair. “I want to perform.”

“Then why aren’t you planning to audition?” He asked her, knowing full well that her use of keep thinking about it was her way of saying no.

“Because if I don’t make this I’m gonna be stuck singing fucking opera for the rest of my life.” She said in exasperation as if this was the first time she had even said her fears aloud.

He reached across the table and took her hands in his. He pulled her more towards the table so that she would only be able to focus on what he was saying. “Kathryn Johnson, you are not going to be singing opera for the rest of your life. You are going to kill this audition and then maybe they’ll figure out that you need to be singing more contemporary music.”

She sighed. “I hope you’re right.”

“Have I ever lied to you?” He asked with a small reassuring smile.

She shook her head. “No, no you have not.”

“So what are you doing when you get back?”

She rolled her eyes and sat back in her seat. “I’m auditioning to be in the spring musical.”

He just grinned triumphantly at her. “That’s the spirit.”


	2. ii

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I apologize for not getting on track with updates right out of the gate. This section of the book needed to have a lot of rewrites and new scenes added since I just skimmed over this time in Kat's life when this story was one whole book. With this update I hope to get back on track and everything will go as planned :) I'm not even updating on it's regular day but I wanted to get this out especially since the reason I'm not is because I had to deal with some wifi issues thanks to good ol' Hurricane Florence. If anyone was affected I hope you all are safe and I hope it's a speedy recovery. Much love!!

A few weeks after fall break, Kathryn was back at Brown, supporting Daveed in his first college production. The play was emotional and the whole cast really just sucked the audience in. There were definitely tears shed. She stood in the lobby of the theatre, waiting for him to come out from backstage and in her hands, she held a small bouquet of roses.

When Daveed saw her, he smiled and waved but on his way over to her, he was snagged by a few of his classmates. Kathryn couldn't help but to notice how one girl kept smiling and touching his arm whenever she could. She looked down at the roses, trying to keep her emotions at bay. Just friends, they were just friends.

"Are those for me?" Daveed asked, causing Kathryn to look up at her friend with wide eyes. She hadn't realized that he had made his way over to her.

"Yeah..." She trailed off, looking a little sheepish as she handed him the bouquet. "I panicked because I didn't know what to get you and I couldn't remember what your mom usually got you. So I stopped in the grocery store and I got roses of all things." She babbled on trying to explain herself.

Daveed laughed as he took the flowers. "Kat, you didn't have to get me anything. They're not even going to last long."

"Then I'll get you a teddy bear next show." She promised.

"You're really trying to get me laughed at by my team aren't you?" He teased her even though he would cherish anything that Kathryn gave him.

"What do you want me to do Diggs?" She asked, exasperated.

"Well, you could give me a hug for starters." He flashed her a smile.

Kathryn smiled but rolled her eyes before standing on her tiptoes to wrap her arms around his neck. His arms immediately went around her waist, pulling her in close. "Thank you for the flowers, Kat and for making it out here. You honestly really didn't have to get me anything. You being here is enough." He told her as he gave her a small squeeze.

"You know that, that's not going to happen. I'll figure out something." She smiled up at him as she pulled back from the hug. "You did fantastic by the way. The whole thing was amazing."

"Thanks Kit Kat." He grinned as he stepped back a bit and offered his arm. "Shall we go eat? I don't know about you but I'm starving."

She looped her arm around his as they made their way out of the theatre. "Food sounds pretty good right now."

"So, how'd your audition go?" Daveed asked once they settled into the booth at the cafeteria.

"I thought it went okay. We won't hear back until closer to the end of the semester though. Ashley and I are going to the fall musical next week to see if it'll be as good as the play." Kathryn nodded, sipping on her drink.

"Well, you just let me know when I get to tell you, I told you so." He grinned at her, earning him a small kick to the shin.

"Ow..." He over exaggerated as he leaned down to rub his shin. It was honestly more like a tap than a kick.

"That's what you get." She teased him, popping a fry into her mouth with a small grin.

After they ate, they made their way back to Daveed's dorm room. "You leaving me in the morning?" He asked when there was a commercial on. They were sitting on his bed. He was resting against the headboard while Kathryn sat in between his legs.

"Yeah. I gotta get back so I can get this song down before my voice lesson later this week." She whined, not looking forward to it. The song was her least favorite this semester but she had to get through it so she could go to the next class. It was an aria that was over used and everyone knew it. For whatever reason her voice professor thought it'd be good for her to sing it.

"Why not practice right now?" He offered.

"Because I'm not going to put you through that."

"Oh, it can't be that bad."

"Fine, but just so I can prove you wrong." She said as she stood up. She was going to sing while looking at Daveed but she couldn't stop laughing no matter how many times she tried to start so she spun around to sing to the window. She placed her hands on her stomach, right where her diaphragm would be so she could make sure that she was breathing properly. She took a deep breath and then began to sing. It was high and light, ethereal almost as she sang in Italian about how her heart languished for her lover.

Daveed watched in awe. She didn't prove him wrong per say, it was just different from what he was used to hearing her sing. Sure he had heard her sing the more classic pieces with choir back in high school but this was something completely different. It was pretty but nothing like how he was used to hearing her. He now knew what she meant when she complained about the songs she was learning.

When she was done, Kathryn turned back around to face him, an expectant look on her face as she waited for his reaction. "Well, it was definitely different but I think I'd rather hear you sing show tunes or you know, anything but that. I mean you sounded great but it's definitely not your style. I didn't even hear why you need to practice it before your lesson." He said, doing his best not to hurt her feelings.

At his last statement Kathryn rolled her eyes before coming back to her original spot. "You mean you didn't hear how some lines I was straining to get the words out because I was running out of air or how I didn't quite hit that high note, like I'm pretty sure my voice even cracked."

He shook his head. "Okay so I may have heard the voice crack but everything else sounded good. Looks like you don't have to leave tomorrow morning after all." He grinned down at her.

"While I would love nothing more to spend a Saturday with you, I've got to get back. Maybe when your track meets start up next semester I can make a weekend of it instead of just an overnight stay." She offered, not really liking that she had to leave so soon either.

He nodded, smiling. "Yeah, I'd like that."

"Then it shall be done." She said while stifling a yawn.

Daveed chuckled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Good now let's get some sleep."

Kathryn nodded and soon the two rearranged themselves on the tiny bed so they could sleep as comfortably as possible. During fall break, Kathryn had slept in his roommate's bed. Since he was still around and could come back at any moment, Daveed offered for her to sleep with him instead of going down to the common room to sleep on the couch.

They had curled up on a couch together, Kathryn tucked into Daveed's side. They had even shared a room together on multiple occasions, but this was different. Both parties were very much aware of how they seemed to fit like puzzle pieces. Kathryn was flush against his chest, her back to him. His arm was wrapped around her to keep her in place so she wouldn't fall off the bed. He even had a leg draped over hers so he would be more comfortable. The bed was already small so to share it with someone else was a struggle for the tall man.

His head was buried in her hair and her face was buried in his pillow. They both were trying to remain as still as possible. It would be so easy to just turn around and confess in the moonlight coming in through the window. They couldn't do that though, the other could not feel the same way, they could ruin what they had and that was something neither of them wanted to risk. So they stayed just like that until they drifted off, fully planning to ignore everything whirring inside them right now come morning.

A week before exams started, the cast list was posted. Ashley and Kathryn stood at the board near the back, nervous for the results. They were standing arm in arm, waiting until they felt brave enough to make their way to actually read the paper. One group of girls was walking away and the girl standing in the middle looked upset. "Who the hell is this Kat Johnson anyway? I should have gotten that role. I've been working my ass off for this school and this is how it repays me. This is my last show with this school and they can't even give me a named character. They put me in the fucking ensemble." She complained as her group unknowingly walked by the girl she was complaining about.

At the sound of that, Kathryn turned towards Ashley with wide eyes. "What do you think that meant?"

Ashley shrugged. "I don't know. Only one way to find out."

They both took a deep breath and maneuvered their way closer to the board. They were able to see the band list first and under keys was Ashley's name. The two did a mini happy dance before doing a double high five to celebrate. The cast list was then able to be seen a little better. Kathryn started looking at the bottom but Ashley started from the top. Ashley didn't have to look to much further because there next to Fanny Brice's name was Kathryn's.

Ashley began hitting Kathryn's upper arm trying to get her attention. "What did you find it?" Kathryn asked, starting to get annoyed with the constant taps.

"Uh, yeah." Ashley pointed to the top of the list.

Kathryn's eyes widened and she was sure her jaw had hit the floor. "Holy, shit, I'm the lead."


	3. iii

The next semester, Kathryn had signed up for a couple of theatre classes. Her voice professor, who also happened to be her academic advisor, had been surprised when she had been cast as the lead. The older woman didn't think that Kathryn had a very strong voice so she was interested in seeing how she did in a stage production. Kathryn had spoken with her aunt before about what she wanted to do since she was thinking that music performance wasn't the major for her. So Kathryn's advisor allowed her to take a few more extra credits so that she could test the waters.

The professor directing the musical adored Kathryn. Since rehearsal started, she saw just how hardworking she was to make sure that the character was all that it could be. There was the senior girl who was upset about not getting the lead, especially after she found out that Kathryn was a freshman who wasn't even a musical theatre major. Kathryn did her best to try and ignore her though.

The night before had been a pretty difficult rehearsal and Kathryn was beginning to doubt why she had been cast. Then again with the senior girl always saying things about how if she were Fanny rehearsal would be different. Kathryn knocked on the door of the professor's office after her latest class. She wanted to talk through some things before showing back up at rehearsal.

Amelia Beatty looked up from her computer at the sound of the knock on her door. She smiled when she saw that it was Kathryn and soon ushered her in. "Close the door if you need." She told the young woman. "What can I do for ya?" She then asked once Kathryn took a seat in front of her desk.

"Are you sure I'm the right person for this character? I mean I love Fanny and I'm having a blast but maybe my understudy should take over the role and I take her spot." Kathryn said, looking down at her hands as she played with her fingers.

Amelia stood and open her door. She was fearful that something like this would happen so she already had a plan of what to do. "Come with me." She motioned as she began to walk out into the hall.

Kathryn grabbed her bag and hurried to follow the other woman. She wasn't sure where they were going or what Amelia was up to but Kathryn trusted the professor and followed her to the small theatre located in the building. "Mrs. Beatty, what are we doing?" She finally asked as Amelia turned on the lights.

"Go stand center stage and start singing one of your songs from your repertoire." She instructed as she made her way to one of the chairs in the audience.

Kathryn did as she was told to do and started singing her favorite song from last semester. It was a folk song but it was still pretty. It was more like a lullaby than a folk song that used to be sung at taverns.

"Now sing the first song that pops into your head." Amelia instructed once Kathryn was done singing.

Once more Kathryn did as she was told except this time she sang Dance With Somebody by Whitney Houston. She had fun with it, moved a bit more than before and she actually had a large grin on her face.

"Now sing what you know of Don't Rain On My Parade." Amelia said after Kathryn stopped. The older woman smiled throughout the whole small performance. It was clear which the young woman prefered to perform.

Kathryn closed her eyes so she could get into character. She took a deep breath and sang through the first verse and chorus. She performed some of the blocking she remembered but she finally took the character and made her, her own. Watching her it was like something had finally clicked and she played right through it. She took it and ran with it.

At the end, Amelia stood and clapped. "Because that, right there. That is why I cast you as Fanny Brice. That is why Alyessa is just in the ensemble. I've told her that she needs to get over it. She wasn't the perfect fit for Fanny because she's too confident."

"So because I'm unsure of myself I'm the perfect fit?" Kathryn asked, not really understanding what Amelia meant by that.

"No," Amelia shook her head, "It's because like Fanny, you have an underlying confidence inside of you that we have to pull out. You tapped into it just now and it was honestly the best performance I've seen out of you yet. You belong up on that stage Kathryn but not in the capacity of the first song I made you sing."

"So I guess that means I'll be making that switch later." Kathryn laughed, feeling more at home than she had since she got to the school.

"Yes. Forget about Doctor Jewells and come be my advisee. Matter of fact do you have some time? We can go through your current schedule and figure out which classes you can drop and then plan out which classes you need to take next fall." Amelia suggested, excited about the idea of Kathryn joining the musical theatre program.

"Yeah, today's my early day so I'm done with classes." Kathryn beamed, excited to find someone who believed in her and seemed to actually want to help her.

The two went back to Amelia's office and about an hour later, everything was done and Kathryn knew what she needed to do in order to make everything official. "See you at rehearsal!" She called out over her shoulder as she made her way down the hall.

"Hey, Kat wait up!" A voice sounded from behind her before running footsteps could be heard.

Kathryn turned to see who called out to her, smiling when she realized it was the male lead in the show. He also happened to be in the couple of acting classes she was in this semester and so far she really enjoyed working with him. He made scenes easy and they played off each other well. It was nice to have. "Oh, hey Eric. What's up?"

"Class just let out and I saw you coming out of Beatty's office and figured maybe we could go grab a coffee or something before rehearsal?" He asked, a bit nervous about her answer. He thought her really pretty and didn't know if the ease he felt with her on stage would translate to off stage as well.

"Yeah, that sound great actually. I was just going to head back to my dorm and be a loner until then." She laughed, changing direction to head to the coffee shop at the library. "I'd love to talk more about our characters. I had an epiphany today while talking to Beatty and I think it'll add even more dynamic to our relationship on stage." She smiled up at him.

"Then afterwards I want to share with you an idea that I had for the assignment for Miller's class. I think you're really gonna like it and if we don't get an A I'm gonna be so mad." He chuckled, adjusting the straps of his bookbag.

"Yes!" Kathryn cheered, laughing a bit. "That's it. I have officially claimed you as my scene partner for the duration of our time here. I don't even know what this idea is yet but just based on the fact of what we've already done together I know it's going to be fabulous."

Eric laughed. "Kat, I think this is truly the start of a perfect partnership."

Kathryn nodded. "Me too." She grinned as they walked into the coffee shop.

Before they knew it, it was show time. Kathryn bounced around backstage with her nervous energy as she usually did. She really wished she could talk with Ashley or Eric but who she was really longing to speak to were Daveed and Rafael. It was weird performing a show without them. Rafael had called earlier to wish her good luck and Daveed had just gotten in from Rhode Island. It would be the first time Daveed came to visit at her school so they had a whole weekend planned around her performance schedule.

Rafael had even planned to hear a review from Daveed since he couldn't personally come out to support Kathryn. He even hoped that since Daveed and Kathryn chose schools that were in neighboring states and were literally an hour and a half away from each other they would finally confess their feelings for each other, maybe even tonight since the two had been sharing twin sized beds lately.

The phone call between him and Daveed at the end of the show proved otherwise, however. His hope that his best friends would see what was right in front of their faces once again seemed to be useless. The chemistry Kathryn and Eric had put Daveed on edge and there was no way he was going to admit that he was jealous.

"Diggs, it's called acting. There's probably nothing more going on than when we acted opposite each other. Now take your girl out to some ice cream, sneak into her dorm and spend the night before you head back to Brown." Rafael said while rolling his eyes at his best friend. While he had gotten used to his friends clearly not wanting to say anything, especially after that stupid pact they had made after junior prom, it still frustrated him to no end sometimes how blind they really were.

"She's finally making her way over, I gotta go." Daveed whispered and hung up, sliding the small Nokia cell phone into his jacket pocket. He didn't want to get too much more into things especially since he wanted to keep living in denial for a little while longer. After all he didn't want to ruin things between him and Kathryn even if Rafael insisted that it wouldn't do what he feared.

When Kathryn spotted Daveed standing off to the side she grinned, letting go of her Eric's hand so she could run to her best friend. "Daveed!" She squealed as she jumped into his awaiting arms. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders as he swayed them both from side to side. It had been a few months since they had seen each other. This weekend was more about supporting each other, it was about reuniting and oh, did it feel so good.

"Hey!" He said with a laugh. "You were so fantastic." He told her with a grin as he set her down.

"I still can't believe they gave me the lead!" She exclaimed, still on her after show high. "Did you really like the show?"

"I loved it. You killed it up there. There's no doubt in my mind why they gave you the lead. Aren't you glad I told you to audition?" He teased her.

"And here I thought you were gonna say something nice." She laughed, nudging his shoulder. "But yes I'm glad you talked me into auditioning."

He chuckled, flashing her a smirk. "You're welcome."

Just then Eric came up to her. He slung an arm around her shoulders, causing her focus to be taken away from Daveed. "Hey, Kat, the cast wants to know if you'll be joining us at J's?" He asked.

"Not tonight, maybe tomorrow though." Then realization dawned on her. She hadn't introduced the two yet. "Oh! Daveed this is Eric. Eric, this is Daveed. Daveed is my best friend in the whole wide world and Eric is practically in all my theatre classes and I have claimed him for all scene partner projects until we graduate." She introduced the two men.

Eric and Daveed shook each other's hand. Daveed tried his best not to let his jealousy show, after all Eric's arm was still draped around Kathryn's shoulders. They both exchanged pleasantries and Kathryn smiled as she got out from under Eric's arm and went over to Daveed's side, looping her arm with his. She didn't notice how Daveed tried to hide his smirk at her movement. "I'll catch ya later, Eric. Daveed and I have some ice cream to go eat." She smiled and waved as she started to pull Daveed to the exit.

"So, when's your next meet?" Kathryn asked as they walked down the sidewalk, arms still linked together.

"In a couple of weeks. You coming?" He raised an eyebrow as he looked down at her.

"Of course, I am! I finish up my classes early on Friday so I was planning on coming then. Maybe we could make a whole weekend out of it?" She asked, remembering the promise she made him last semester.

He grinned, rather excited about her plan. "That sounds perfect to me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is putting media within the chapters a thing that's done here? I know the stories I've read don't do it so I guess I'll just let you know of the songs I'm imagining and the celebs I'm using as a fc for my original characters in notes at the end of chapters. 
> 
> The song featured in the previous chapter (one that Kat practices in Daveed's dorm room): Caro Mio Ben, mezzo range  
> Songs featured in this chapter: Barbra Allen, folk song sung by Joan Baez; I Wanna Dance With Somebody by Whitney Houston; Don't Rain On My Parade, from the musical Funny Girl sung by Barbra Streisand 
> 
> Ashley is portrayed by Deborah Joy Winans (because I don't remember if I said so in the first chapter)  
> Eric is portrayed by Ben Whishaw


	4. iv

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Hiya loves! Thanks so much for all of the love this series has gotten so far. Just a heads up I will only be updating this story and my other ones once this week since Thursday night starts a pretty hectic weekend full of travel, a wedding, and seeing some family I haven't seen in FOREVER. ANYWHO just wanted to let you know that only one update will be happening this week.

Kathryn hurried down to the track, her backpack bouncing awkwardly on her back. She had gotten stuck in some traffic on the way to Brown and it made her nervous about missing Daveed's event.

"Excuse me, they haven't done the hurdles yet, have they?" She asked the person closest to her once she had found her spot in the bleachers. She was glad that her usual spot, front and center was still open. She had been claiming that spot since highschool and if she would have had to find another spot, she was nervous that Daveed wouldn't know that she was there.

The person shook their head before returning their focus to the sprint that was about to take place. Kathryn was relieved at their answer and soon settled into her seat, setting her backpack by her feet. She clapped when she was supposed to clap and cheered when she was supposed to cheer as she waited for Daveed's event.

Once the hurdles were announced, Kathryn cheered as loud as she could when Daveed's name was announced. At the sound of her cheers, Daveed looked over and smiled, giving her a small wave. He had been nervous she wasn't going to be able to make it in time. Before he had gotten to the field, she had called him to let him know about her predicament.

The athletes all got into position. At the sound of the blank gun going off, they took off running and began to jump over the hurdles. Daveed hadn't gotten the best start that she had ever seen him do but he was making up for it. She was bouncing in anticipation as she watched him. He was so close, so close to taking the lead. "C'mon Diggs!" She cheered as she watched the last few seconds of the race.

It was hard to tell who made it to the finish line first from where she was standing but as Daveed walked back, he had his hands on his hips and his head down, shaking it slightly in disbelief. She knew then that he hadn't won. She wished it was like high school where she could go right to him and cheer him up but she had to wait.

At the end of the meet, Kathryn went right to the gate where the athletes were leaving. As soon as Daveed spotted her, he came right over to her and gave her a hug. "You're lucky I have body spray in this bag because now I'm gonna smell like sweaty boy." She teased him as she hugged him back.

He rolled his eyes as he pulled back, purposefully keeping an arm around her shoulders as they walked towards the locker room. "Thanks for coming out, although I wish you didn't have to see that run."

Kathryn shook her head. "Daveed, I've seen a variety of your runs and most of the time they're great. This wasn't even one of your worse ones. You did good and the next time you'll do even better. You move like the Flash anyway. So no more sad talk." She looked up at him with a pointed look.

He chuckled, finally smiling at her. "I don't know what I did to deserve you."

"Oh, shut up. It's what friends are for." She waved his comment off.

Daveed gave her shoulder a squeeze before letting her go. They had reached the locker room anyways so it gave him a true reason to let her go. Her comment about friends stung a little bit but his inner voice told him that if he just told her that he would like to be more than just friends, things would be different. His inner voice about the matter usually sounded more like Rafael than his own. Then again that's exactly what they were. They were friends, best friends and he was glad that they were. It didn't meant that he could wish that he could have the courage to tell her how he really felt about her.

"You remember where the cafeteria is right?" He asked her as he moved to stand in front of her.

She nodded her answer. "Yeah, want to meet over there?" She then asked.

"Yeah. I'll be as quick as I can." He promised, grinning at her before making his way into the building.

"I'm scared to go back home." Kathryn said about midway through their meal.

Daveed lowered his sandwich from the bite he was about to take. His brows were furrowed in confusion as he tried to read her mind. He knew, of course, that it wasn't possible but this confession seemed to come out of nowhere. There was no emotion to read though. She was stoic. Her mouth sat in a straight line and her eyes that usually sparkled like gems in the sunlight were now dull and dark. "Why?" He finally asked when he couldn't come up with his own theory.

"Everytime I even think about it, I get this weird feeling in my stomach. Like something is trying to tell me not to go back." She tried to explain.

"Well, your dad's a dick so why would you willingly go back but you can stay with me or Rafa or even your aunt now without any worries. Hell we're flying back together anyway so just stay with me. You know my mom won't care." Daveed said, feeling as if she was still holding something back.

"It's not just that." She sighed, trying to get her feelings into words. She might as well tell him the story about her time with her parents over the holidays. "They acted weird after Christmas, like weirder than normal. There was some major ignoring me on their part being done and I took it as a blessing because I didn't have to put up with their bullshit but as I think about it now, it's starting to worry me. They only ever leave me alone before they implement something utterly ridiculous and I'm scared that as soon as I get back they're gonna do something."

He reached across the table and took her hand, giving it a slight squeeze. "We've put up with their shit all throughout high school. We can face whatever they throw our way. I mean they're not really all that imaginative." He gave her a small smirk.

She smiled at that, squeezing his hand in reply. "You're right. Thanks, Diggs. You're the best, you know that?"

"Now I do." He smiled at her before they went back to finishing their food.

Kathryn stared out the window as her father drove her back home from the airport. Her bags were all in the backseat. The car was silent except for the sound of Beethoven's 4th symphony. It was driving her crazy. "Why aren't you talking to me?" She finally asked, not being able to take it anymore. "You're usually asking about grades, if I did well enough to keep my scholarship, making me want to rip my hair out because you're trying to convince me to not do music or theatre."

"Oh, so you do get grades even though you're not doing any class work that has some worth to it?" He asked, looking over at her with a raised eyebrow.

"The classes I take now have worth to them. They're making me a better performer." She argued.

"Where is this going to take you though, Kathryn? You won't be able to fend for yourself. You'll just continue to ask your mother and me for money and for things while you run off those so called friends of yours doing god knows what. I knew when you first met them that they would be nothing but trouble and look where you are now. You were supposed to go to Stanford, become a lawyer." He told her, his anger beginning to boil to the surface.

"I didn't want to become a lawyer though. That was all you and Lynn, who by the way is not my mother. Where is all of this coming from anyway? I didn't ask for a thing when I was here over the holidays." This was why she was scared to come home. She was going to have to sneak out later and make her way to the bay so she could decompress.

Keith parked the car in the driveway and turned to look at his daughter. "Lynn is the closest thing to a mother you have. She helped me raise you even after knowing that you killed your actual mother." He sneered.

"There were complications with the delivery. They weren't able to stop the bleeding after they delivered me. You can't continue to put that on me. Lynn hated me because I wasn't her own kid. Now where the fuck is this coming from?" She didn't care anymore. Her heart hurt too much even after hearing for the thousandth time that she was the reason her real mother wasn't with her anymore. She wasn't worried about her language around her father anymore.

It didn't even matter for what was said out of his mouth was far more shocking than dropping the f bomb in front of a strict parent. "We felt like you only showed up in December because that was when you could get gifts and money from us. Until you can come to properly respect us, we don't want you living here." He said as if he wasn't kicking his own daughter out.

For a few moments, Kathryn was speechless before a fire raged within her. "You mean until I come to my senses and follow the path that you want me on right?"

Keith didn't respond but Kathryn knew that's exactly what he meant by properly respect us. She got out of the car and started pulling her bags out of the backseat. Her father got out, nervous what she was going to do. He just stood as he watched her pile her bags in the front yard. "You know what? Then I guess this is goodbye because you will never see me again. You finally got what you wanted, huh? You blamed me for her death and you hated me ever since they made you hold me in your arms. I may have been days old but I felt it and I've felt it ever since. You and Lynn can do whatever the fuck you want with my things inside because I've got all I need right here. So fuck her and fuck you." She pulled her phone out of her pocket and threw it at him. He was paying for it anyway so if he didn't want to support her any longer than she might as well get rid of everything that he had given her.

He was able to dodge the phone, making it hit the car, leaving a dent. It didn't shatter as it hit the ground which made her a little disappointed but she was rather thrilled that it left a dent in his car. While she had been ranting to him she had started placing her bags around her shoulders. She was going to walk to Daveed's, call Aunt Kelly, and start figuring out all that she needed to do to distance herself far, far away from her father.

"Kathryn, don't go like this. We just want the best for you. You can come back." He tried to reason with her when he realized that she was going to be leaving forever. He had hoped that this would have made her see what a big mistake this past year had been.

She stopped in her tracks and turned back to look at him. "No. You don't get to do that. I'm sure you'll find some way to blame me and not yourself because you're so good about playing the victim but that's not going to work. You did this. You kicked me out. I'm a free woman now. I don't have to listen to you ever again. I'm going to live my life and you are going to regret this day, regret it. Goodbye, Keith have a happy life with Lynn. You two really did deserve each other. I don't know how my mother did it."

As she made her way down the street, the tears that she was holding back began to spill over. Sure they never had the best relationship but this moment she finally knew that her father didn't really want her. He kicked out his own flesh and blood. She didn't come back until December because she saw no point in spending the money on plane tickets to fly back home for a week or a long weekend. Daveed didn't even fly back for fall break or Thanksgiving either. If her father was so worried about not seeing his daughter then he could have done as Barbara and Kelly did, fly out to see them on the shorter breaks.

Cars had been going past her. She was about half way to Daveed's house. She could make it even if it was hard to see through her tears. That was when she noticed that a car was slowing down and rolling along with her. She gripped the straps of her bag, hoping that nothing bad was going to happen to her as she heard the window roll down. In hindsight this probably wasn't the best plan but she wasn't about to sit on the curb and wait outside of her old house for someone to come pick her up.

"Kat, what the hell are you doing?" Rafael called out as he placed the car in park. He had placed his hazards on and was ushering people to drive around him out the driver window. He had driven past her at first but when she walked past him as he waited for a traffic light, he couldn't believe that she was walking down the street with her bags bogging her down.

At the sound of Rafael's voice, fresh tears surfaced as relief mixed with her broken heart. She turned to him and the minute he saw that she was crying, he hopped out of his car and ran over to her. "Give me these." He said as he started taking some of her bags away from her and placed them in the back of her car. He didn't know what had happened but he easily guessed it had to do something with her father. "I'm headed to Daveed's now, get in and you can tell us both why you were walking down the street with your entire luggage."

He opened the door for her but before she went in, she pulled him in for a hug. "Thank you. I missed you so much." She cried into his chest.

Rafael just held her close, rubbing soothing circles along her back. "I missed you too, Kit Kat." He kissed her head and gave her a tight squeeze. "Now let's get to Diggs' place before anyone gets any crazy ideas, huh?" He pulled back a little to look down at her.

She nodded and pulled back completely so she could get into the passenger seat. Rafael closed the door and hurried around to the driver's side. He opened up the center console and handed Kathryn a couple of napkins. "Sorry it's not proper tissues."

She chuckled as she took the napkins from him. "They'll still get the job done. Thanks." She smiled over at him.

"Of course." He smiled back at her before turning off his hazards and pulling away from the side of the road.

They made it to Daveed's far quicker than what Kathryn would have done by walking. It felt like they had gotten there in lightning speed. She had been grateful for him just blasting the radio. She didn't really register what songs were playing but the booming bass allowed her to just be in the moment. It allowed her to not think that he didn't just pick her up off the side of the road because her father had just kicked her out. It allowed her to think that he just picked her up from her house and they were going to go to Daveed's to hang out all together because they hadn't done that in months.

When Rafael parked the car, Kathryn just sat there, zoning out. He worried about her. What the hell did her father do to her this time? He didn't see anything that would indicate that he hit her, thank god. At least he still didn't do that. "Kat, we're here." He whispered, worried about scaring her.

Kathryn blinked a few times, coming back to reality. She gave a small nod and got out of the car. She stood at the back passenger door, waiting for him to unlock it. He came around to her side and shook his head. "It'll be fine in there. Come on. We'll figure out what to do to and then we can get your things."

"There's nothing you can do. What's done is done." She gave a slight shrug and followed him up to the front door of Daveed's.

Rafael rang the doorbell and when Daveed answered it, his smile turned into one of confusion. He wasn't expecting to see Kathryn again so soon. "I found her with all her luggage walking down the street. I'm assuming she was coming here." Rafael explained.

"She is standing right here and can answer why she's here just fine." She said, a hint of anger around her words.

Rafael mumbled his apology as Daveed zero focused in on her. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong is how my dad still blames me for my mother's death. What's wrong is how my dad still tries to say Lynn is my mother. What's wrong is how my dad doesn't think that I've done anything with substance this past year. What's wrong is how my dad thinks that I'm ungrateful when he or Lynn didn't once come to visit me. What's wrong is how my dad thinks I only came back to mooch off of him and his wife. What's wrong is how my dad thinks because of all of these things that kicking me out of the house until I learn how to properly respect them is the answer. What's wrong is how after all of this, my dad still tried to say it was what's best for me and that he thinks I'm ever coming back. What's wrong is because of him I feel like I don't belong here." She started off angry but with each sentence, with each revelation of all that happened to her in a few short minutes of being home, the anger melted into grief. Her voice was strong at the beginning but despite her best efforts, near the end it broke completely as her tears returned. She knew that she had Daveed, Rafael, and her aunt, that because of them she still had a place in the bay but having the house that she had grown up in taken away from her felt like she was now all alone.

Daveed immediately pulled her into his arms and held her close. One hand cradled her head to his chest while his other arm wrapped tightly around her waist. She gripped his shirt tightly and just cried. Anger was in both of their eyes as they did their best to bring her inside the house. They couldn't believe that her father would stoop so low. How could someone do this and feel like they're making the right decision?

They still stood in the doorway but Rafael had managed to get the front door closed. He wasn't sure if Daveed's mom or brother were around but he was slightly scared to know what Barbara would do when she found out about this. He was most definitely scared to know what Kelly would do. "Hey, Kat, do you want me to call Kelly?" He asked her, gently touching her arm to try and comfort her somehow.

She sniffled and nodded her head, still gripping onto Daveed as tight as she could. Rafael smiled and nodded before walking around the pair to go call Kelly. Daveed placed a kiss to her forehead as his other friend walked by them. "C'mon, kitten, let's go sit on the couch." He then whispered to her. He wanted to just carry her with the way she was holding onto him but she nodded and slowly pulled away.

He kept an arm around her shoulders as they shuffled into the living room. She sat down in the middle of the couch and grabbed the blanket draped across the back. She curled up underneath it and as soon as Daveed sat down, she moved so she could rest her head on his shoulder. "When I said I was afraid to come back I didn't expect this." She whispered, still trying to calm down from her crying.

Daveed wrapped his arms around her and pulled her as close as he could. "I'm so sorry, Kat. You still belong here. There are still people who want you here and three of those people are in this house."

"You're mom's here?" She asked, looking up at him in awe since she was sure her sobs had been loud enough that anyone else in the house would have heard them.

"Yeah, she's in the shower though, getting ready for work. I'm sure she'll be down in a minute." He answered her.

As if just speaking about her could conjure her up, Barbara hurried into the living room and sat on the other side of Kathryn. The older woman pulled the girl into her arms and just held her. "Oh, you sweet girl. You should have never heard those words out of someone who calls themselves your father mouth." She then began to rock her slightly, murmuring comforting words to the young woman.

Rafael wasn't too far behind Barbara. He came over to where Daveed was sitting and whispered, "Kelly's on her way and she is furious."


	5. v

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Well, I know I completed this book over on my Wattpad but just realized I didn't do the same thing over here. So get ready for all of the chapters to come at ya! Hope you enjoy and can't wait to hear what ya think!

Kathryn jolted awake at the sound of someone beating on the door. She had fallen asleep while she, Daveed, and Rafael were watching tv. She sat up straight as Daveed stood to answer the door. Rafael had said that Kelly was furious, they just didn't realize how furious she truly was.

"Where is she?" Kelly asked as soon as the door opened. She took in Daveed's shocked expression and took a deep breath. "Sorry. Hi, dear." She then pulled him into a hug. As she pulled back she squeezed his upper arms. "You and Rafael are a godsend. I'm so glad she has you both in her life. Is she nearby?"

"I'm in here, Aunt Kelly." Kathryn called out when she realized it was her aunt at the door.

The older woman came into the living room and took Daveed's spot next to Kathryn. "Your father better be lucky that you are now considered an adult or he would have had a custody battle on his hands." She said as she held onto her niece.

"He's not worth it, Aunt Kelly. I've already wasted plenty of tears on him." She sighed as she held onto her aunt. "I've had my post cry nap. I've thought about things and I don't want to waste anymore time thinking about the man who apparently thought so little of me. I'm ready to move on with my life. I have things to do, things to create. Good news is that I'll finally be able to live with you like I've always wanted and I won't have to drive too far to work."

Kelly nodded and just pulled her niece in closer. "Now, do you mind telling me why Rafael picked you up from the side of the road? Why didn't you just call?"

Kathryn bit her lip as she pulled back a little bit. "I, uh, threw my phone at him. Didn't hit him but dented his car. That sucker didn't even break." She laughed a bit, flashing a smile that was a mix between proud and sheepish.

Daveed and Rafael busted out laughing while Kelly just looked at her niece in shock. She couldn't believe that Kathryn had done that. Then again she had never seen her niece truly angry in the moment. "So I guess I'll get you a new phone then."

"Thank you." Kathryn said with a small smile.

"You ready to get home? No offense, sweetheart but you look like you could use a nap." Kelly asked, tucking a strand of hair behind her niece's ear. She not only had to adjust to different time zones but she had to deal with her father's bullshit and Kathryn just looked tired even if she had just woken up.

Kathryn rolled her eyes but let out a small laugh. "Oh jeez, thanks Aunt Kelly."

Kelly flashed a loving smile towards her niece. "C'mon, let's get your things." She then stood with the three teenagers following suit.

Daveed and Rafael followed Kathryn and Kelly out to Kelly's car. They helped their friend place everything in her aunt's car. "Tell your mothers that we need to have a lunch soon." Kelly told the boys.

Once they promised to pass along the message, she got into the car to give the friends some privacy to say goodbye. Kathryn pulled both of them into a group hug. "I honestly don't even know where I would be without either of you, so thank you. You guys are seriously the best." She squeezed their sides before pulling back. "I'll see you guys later?"

"Of course," Daveed smiled.

"You can't get rid of us that easily." Rafael teased, causing her to chuckle a bit.

"Wouldn't dream of it." She said before giving them each a hug.

It was a few days later before she saw them both again. They drove up to Berkeley to stay for the weekend since it was the last free one Kathryn and Daveed knew for sure they had before they started their summer jobs. To their surprise Rafael was the first one to fall to the sandman's demands. Both Kathryn and Daveed had teased their friend about going to bed early in the middle of their card game. Now they both were wishing that they could fall asleep. Kathryn sighed and got out of bed, making her way downstairs and out the door. She needed to go to her spot to think anyway. It was a few minutes later when Daveed came out of the room he was sharing with Rafael to check on Kathryn. When he noticed her room empty, he knew exactly where she would be. He sighed and crept out of the house to make his way to her spot.

"I knew I would find you out here." He said as he walked down the dock to join her at the end of it.

She turned to look up at him and gave him a sheepish smile. "You caught me. What are you doing up?"

He shrugged as he slid out of his flip flops and sat down, dipping his feet into the water. "Just couldn't get to sleep. Rafa was knocked out so I went to go check to see if you were still awake and I find an empty room. So here we are."

She nodded, letting out a small sigh. "I couldn't get to sleep either. Each time I closed my eyes all I would hear were my father's words. I thought about sneaking into the cemetery to go talk to my mom but that's a little better guarded than this spot."

"Kat, what your dad said to you was wrong. To blame you for that it's just not right. I'm honestly surprised you aren't the most spoiled kid I know." He chuckled a bit, bumping his shoulder against hers.

"Would you have hung out with me if I had been spoiled though?" She looked over at him with a raised eyebrow.

He looked out at the lake for a moment, thinking about his answer. Would he have still hung out with her if she had been someone who acted spoiled. "Honestly? Probably not."

"Then I'm glad I wasn't." She gave him a soft smile. It was the truth. She couldn't even picture her life without Daveed or Rafael in it. If her father had held her near and dear as most fathers probably would have in their situation, she was certain she wouldn't have her two best friends in the whole world in her life.

"He still could have treated you better. Both of them could have," he mumbled.

"There were moments. He wasn't awful all the time." She tried to defend but knew that she was beginning to grasp at straws.

He rolled his eyes at that. There was no way that that statement was completely true. "Please tell me when he wasn't awful because I may have only come into everything in 9th grade but something tells me that it didn't start when you went to high school."

"Every year for my birthday he would take me to the ice cream shop that he and my mom would always go to close to the bay. We'd walk along the pier, watch the boats go by and eat our ice cream. Then for Hanukkah he had gotten me my own menorah so I could celebrate like my mom and with my aunt. When I was younger he would get me small gifts and then when I was older it stopped but he still would always say the prayers with me." She then realized that she hadn't been able to get that menorah before she started her trek to Daveed's house. She had just taken her bags from college because that's all she needed. She looked down at her feet, swinging her foot slightly causing ripples in the water. "But now I don't have it anymore," she whispered.

"Let me ask my mom. I'm sure she's got an extra lying around somewhere. Or what about Kelly?" He offered, a small smile tugging on his lips. He was already going through his holiday inventory in his head and he was pretty sure he would be able to give her one of their menorahs they didn't really use anymore.

Kathryn shook her head. She didn't want him to have to go out of his way for anything. "You don't have to do that and since I'll now be living with Kelly it won't matter anyway."

"I know I don't have to but I want to. Then I can't take you to ice cream on your actual birthday because I've got to go back to school that week but we'll go get some before I leave." He could tell having her own menorah was important for her, especially since it had been a way to be close with her mom. There was no way he wasn't going to help her keep that tradition.

"Daveed..." She tried to argue but he was having none of it.

"Nope, it's decided. If those are the only two good things that came out of that house besides being the roof over your head as you grew up then I will take them on. It's written in the best friend handbook. So no arguments." He gave her a pointed look, hoping that she would just agree and they could move on. Of course, he should have expected anything but.

"That's just it Daveed. That was the house I grew up in and now I'm not ever welcomed back," she argued.

Daveed sighed and looked over at her. "I'm gonna ask you a serious question, okay? Are you sure that house wasn't more like a cage?"

When she did nothing but open and close her mouth as she tried to find an answer he began his explanation. "Think about it, Kat. You couldn't truly create in that house without having to look over your shoulder every second to make sure you weren't doing something to upset your dad. You were good in high school but this past show? It's the most free I've seen you on a stage and honestly I can't wait to see what art you create now that you're free of that cage."

She just stared at him in shock. She was speechless. He was giving her another way to look at things. Ever since she was old enough she knew that one day she wanted to live with her Aunt Kelly. She was always sneaking out of the house to either go be with friends or to just be herself. If she really wanted to get psychoanalytic, the reason she hated the music performance major so much was because she was being forced once again to learn classical music when that wasn't what she wanted to do in the least bit.

"You may not have those four walls anymore but you still have the town, you still have your aunt, you still have Rafa's mom, you still have my mom, hell you still have both mine and Rafa's family not just our moms, you still have Rafa, and you still have me. We're not going anywhere and we would never turn our backs on you." He promised her, knowing that she was also struggling to figure out if she even belonged here anymore. He wanted to reiterate what he had told her earlier but most importantly he wanted her to know that yes, she did belong, and that she still had plenty of people in her corner.

Without even thinking anything through, Kathryn leaned forward and kissed Daveed. It wasn't anything major, just a peck, but it was enough to make her realize what she had done. How could she? She had just ruined everything. He was just being so amazing and it was like her heart took over instead of listening to her head. She stared at him briefly with wide eyes before hopping up and taking off running. Maybe if she ran then it wouldn't mess things up, they could still be friends.

Daveed was just as shocked and oh how he wished he had kissed her back. Her reaction to it though made him glad that he hadn't. Maybe Rafa had been wrong about her feelings towards him. Or maybe he had been right and she just didn't know it yet. He wouldn't bring anything up though because she needed a friend more than a boyfriend at the moment. So he chased after her. He needed her to know that things between them were going to be okay despite all that was swirling around in his head. Before she reached the end of the dock, he had caught up to her, reaching out and taking her wrist to get her to stop.

She was scared out of her mind. He chased after her, that was a good sign though wasn't it? She took a deep breath and slowly turned around, keeping her eyes down. "I'm sorry. That shouldn't have happened. I was just so caught up." She blurted out, hoping that he would forgive her.

"Hey, don't worry about it. It's dark and you missed my cheek." He then leaned down and placed a kiss to her cheek. "See? No worries." He smiled down at her before turning around and crouching down so she could easily get onto his back. "Now hop on. I'll carry you back."

Kathryn let out a sigh of relief before climbing onto his back. Daveed looped his arms around her legs and began the small hike back to Kelly's house. Kathryn rested her chin on his shoulder, occasionally pointing out things that he might need to look out for. He carried her all the way back up to her room. When he set her down, she wrapped her arms around his middle and buried her face into his back. "Thank you, Daveed. You mean the world to me. I need you to know that."

He lowered his head and smiled. "Come here." He lifted his arm up so she could shuffle around to his front. He pulled her back into a hug, resting his head on top of hers. "I'm always going to be here for you. No matter what. I need you to know that."

She nodded her head and pulled back. "Sweet dreams, Daveed."

"Sweet dreams, Kat." He smiled at her as she moved back around him to go into her room.

As soon as her door was closed he hurried into the room he was sharing with Rafael. He contemplated waking the other boy up but decided against it. He didn't really feel like hearing Rafael tell him that he should have told her that it was okay and kiss her back. That was probably never going to happen again. It was over and done with before he could really admit anything to memory. He groaned into his pillow before getting comfortable. There was no way he would be able to sleep now. 


	6. vi

Things were slightly awkward first thing in the morning. As fate would have it, both Kathryn and Daveed opened their doors at the same time. They both froze but then Kathryn realized just how zombie like he seemed which caused her to laugh. "How hard did you sleep? You still look like you're just barely awake." She teased him.

He just shrugged and rubbed a hand over his face, trying to wake himself up more. Truth be told he barely slept but he saw the sunlight streaming through the window and when he checked what time it was, it was an acceptable time to be up. He answered her with some noise that emphasized his shrug.

"Well, then on that note, I'll go put some coffee on." She nodded before making her way down the stairs and into the kitchen.

And that was that. Once Daveed woke up more and they were with the other two inhabitants of the house, it was like last night hadn't even happened.

Before they knew it, it was August. It seemed like they had worked the summer away even if they were able to hang out in between their work hours. Daveed was packed and ready to head back to Rhode Island while Rafael and Kathryn were planning their birthday week festivities. In between planning, Kathryn too was packing and figuring out all that she needed to take back to Connecticut with her.

Ever since the incident, she hadn't heard one word from her father and she didn't go anywhere near her old road. She still didn't really know how she felt about the entire situation. She wasn't completely numb to it like she had been acting but she had started to move on. She had realized that Daveed had been right. The house she grew up in was like a cage. After work she had started practicing piano once more but with the songs she wanted to. One morning a guitar was sitting at the foot of the bed. On her desk was an intro to guitar book with a note from her aunt. "Heard you talking about learning. Couldn't think of a better person to pass dad's guitar to."

Kathryn had freaked out, running down the stairs to find her aunt. "Well the music gene skipped a generation since your mother and I definitely didn't get it so clearly it's all yours." Kelly said as she hugged her niece, not wanting any thanks for the gift whatsoever. All the thanks she needed was hearing Kathryn go from plunking around on it as she learned to strumming and keeping it together as she got the hang of it.

As promised, she and Daveed were walking along the pier, eating ice cream to celebrate her birthday. Once they found an empty bench, they hurried to claim it since the area seemed rather crowded. "I can't believe you're leaving me tomorrow." Kathryn said after her latest bite of ice cream. She rested her head on his shoulder and let out a long sigh.

"I wouldn't leave you if I didn't have to." Daveed rested his head on top of Kathryn's as he continued to eat his ice cream. "This is supposed to be a celebration though so no more sad talk." He then ordered.

She laughed, carefully nodding her head even if he still lifted his head from hers at the movement. "Okay, fine, no more sad talk."

"Just talk about how amazing of a friend I am and that I'm still your favorite even though I'm pretty sure that hasn't changed in like two years." He chuckled as he handed over the gift bag that he had been carrying around with him.

"I mean, I can make that change pretty quick. You are leaving me, after all." She teased, pulling out her phone, pretending to call Rafael to let him know of his new status.

"Open the bag, Kat." He rolled his eyes, nudging it a little closer to her.

Kathryn laughed as she sat her ice cream cup and phone to the side. "Fine." She began pulling out the tissue paper, handing it to Daveed so it wouldn't blow away. When she got to the bottom, she pulled out a beautiful, silver menorah. Her eyes welled up with tears as she recognized it. It was her mom's. He had somehow gotten her mom's menorah back. "How?"

"I don't want to tell you how because I know it'll make you more upset but just know that I have my ways." Daveed said, hoping to spare her feelings since he knew this whole situation still was weighing heavy on her shoulders.

She let out a humorless laugh. "They donated my things, didn't they?"

He sighed, not expecting her to so quickly put two and two together. "Yeah, my mom saw Lynn drop off some boxes. She knew the guy who was taking them in to inventory and was able to grab it."

A sad smile graced her features as she stared down at the menorah. "Well, thank you." She then looked up at him, pulling him in for a hug. "I'm just glad I have it back. I don't care about how. So thank you. You're still my favorite."

Daveed held her close, giving her a slight squeeze. "That's what I like to hear." He chuckled, pulling back with a smile.

Kathryn laughed, nudging his shoulder. "You're the worst."

"That's not what you were saying just a minute ago." He flashed her a cheeky grin.

She rolled her eyes as she set the menorah back into the bag, stuffing the tissue paper back in as well. "Maybe Rafa is my new favorite." She teased as she picked up her ice cream and phone again.

"Oh c'mon." He groaned, leaning closer to her. "Don't be this way."

"What way?" She asked him innocently, trying so hard not to smile.

He just gave her a pointed look and that's when she lost it. She began laughing which in turn made him start laughing and soon they were leaning towards each other laughing. "I'm gonna miss you." Kathryn said once their laughter died down.

"I'm gonna miss you too, Kit Kat." He placed a kiss on her forehead.

Two weeks later, Kathryn was back at Trinity and missing both of her friends like crazy. The week before she barely had time to register how much she missed Daveed since she and Rafael were always doing something. They were born three days a part, with Rafael technically being the older between the two and for their birthday week, they attached themselves to each other's hips. They had done everything from just hanging out together, to doing cake and ice cream with their families, to going to listen to live music wherever they could get in. They danced, they laughed, they cried, they did it all which made leaving that much harder.

She was a little nervous going back. She and Ashley had managed to get a suite but the two other people that would be living with them were strangers. She had heard the horror stories of bad roommates. She just hoped that the two others weren't like those stories and that they didn't mind music.

"Oh my god, welcome back! I missed you so much." Ashley said as she wrapped Kathryn into a hug.

Kathryn dropped her bags and returned the tight hug. "I missed you too. We need to figure out a way to have you visit next time."

"Girl, I know you were with your boys twenty-four, seven so don't even lie to me." Ashley teased as she pulled back. She then picked up one of Kathryn's bags and walked with her down to their room. "Our new roommate is actually pretty awesome. I think we'll all get along but I don't think they ever filled the other single."

Kathryn picked up her other bag and followed her friend to their room. "One, even more reason why I missed you. I did not have a lot of girl time and two, you're telling me that we could potentially be living with just one random roommate?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying. Her name's Darby, by the way, and she's a communications major, wants to get into radio." Ashley further explained, opening up the door. "Hey, Darby, I found our other roommate!" She called out as she went further into the suite.

A brunette came out from around the corner with a smile. "Hey, you must be Kat. I've already heard so much about you." Darby held out her hand in introduction.

Kathryn adjusted the strap of her bag and shook her hand. "Nice to..." She slowed down her greeting as she heard the next song that began playing. The beat sounded familiar and then it dawned on her. "Are you listening to Hammer?"

Darby looked a little confused. She looked between Ashley and Kathryn to try and determine the significance and why her new roommate just got really excited. "Uh, yeah. You know MC Hammer? Like besides Can't Touch This?" It was rare when someone else knew more than his biggest hit especially since their school was so small and hip hop wasn't among the genres mostly listened to by the students here.

"Do I - Ashley you didn't tell her yet?" Kathryn looked back towards her friend before facing Darby once more. "I'm from the bay so of course I know who MC Hammer is."

"Shut up. What part of the bay? I'm from San Fran." Darby smiled, starting to become more and more relieved that her two new roommates weren't going to be like the horror stories she had heard.

"No way. I'm from Oakland." Kathryn laughed as the two girls hugged.

Ashley just grinned, glad to know that her prediction was right. If things truly worked out then she really would have to figure out a way to come visit California in the summer. As the semester carried on it became more obvious that Ashley would be making a trip. The girls had become attached at the hip, always seen together unless they were in class. They hoped that their empty room was never filled. They liked the dynamic they had grown together and they just knew that if someone else entered into it, it would be completely different. 


	7. vii

When classes started up again, Kathryn and Eric shared nearly every class together. Eric had been so excited to return to the one place he felt like he could be himself. At home, his family didn't understand why he was a musical theatre major. They had wanted him to go into business or something like that.

As soon as he saw Kathryn, he hurried over to her and wrapped her up in a hug. She laughed as she hugged him back. "Summer was too long without you." He said, giving her a squeeze before pulling back.

"I missed you too." She grinned at him as they settled down in their seats. "Are you ready for another fun filled year, partner?" She teased him.

"You know it. Couldn't make it through without you." He bumped his shoulder against hers. He wondered, as the professor started class, if she knew how true that statement was. As the semester continued they continued to grow close. He knew that he really liked her but he couldn't help but to wonder if what they were creating on stage could translate off stage. They were great romantic partners on stage and she seemed to accept him for all his quirks off stage. He felt no judgement from her and while he was sure he could probably tell her about him questioning his sexuality, he just couldn't go from what they had now to see judgement written all over her face.

It wasn't until spring semester that year that he finally got up the courage to ask her out. For their second year's big spring musical, they did Hello, Dolly! Kathryn was set to play Irene Malloy and Eric was set to play Cornelius Hackl. They were once more cast to play romantic leads with each other. Eric took that as a sign of destiny.

After they had just finished running through the show for their first dress rehearsal, Eric pulled Kathryn over to the side before she went into her dressing room to get back into her everyday clothes. "Is everything okay?" She asked, worry all over her features.

Eric smiled at her, taking her hands in his so he could give them a gentle squeeze. He finally had built up the courage to ask her. They had, had a great run through. during one of their scenes he had felt something and he knew that this was his now or never moment. "Yeah, but it would be even better if you said yes."

"Yes to what?" Her worry quickly turned into confusion.

"Yes to being my girlfriend. Kat, will you go out with me? I know we already spend a lot of time together, especially when we do shows but when I'm not around you, the world just seems that much duller until I see you again." Eric looked hopeful.

Kathryn smiled and nodded her head. This was the way she wished she had been asked out in high school. Then again the only person who ever dated her was just trying to humiliate her. She still laughs thinking back to how she and Daveed won both Homecoming and Prom queen and king their senior year. Karma had indeed been very good to them that year. Now she was going to be treated like she should be, or at least it seemed that way. She certainly enjoyed each minute she spent with Eric. "Yes, I'll be your girlfriend."

Eric grinned at her and placed a kiss on her cheek. "Then go get dressed and we'll go get some pizza."

"Sounds like the perfect first date to me." She smiled and then ran into the dressing room to get changed.

By now, Daveed didn't just greet Kathryn after a show. Darby stood with him and after Ashley came out from backstage, her and her family stood waiting for Kathryn to appear as well. "It's like you unknowingly started a fan club." Darby teased him as they stood, waiting for Kathryn to come out to the lobby after her Hello, Dolly performance.

"Guess you could say it all started in high school. Glad to know it's grown. She deserves all the fans she can get." Daveed chuckled.

"How you two have not dated is seriously beyond me." Darby laughed as she waved to Kathryn who had just appeared from backstage with Eric.

The comment threw Daveed off as he turned to look down at Darby. "Have you been talking to Rafa?" He had only ever known his best friend to make comments like that. Over winter break, Kathryn had introduced Rafael and Darby so it could be a possibility that the two had talked but about his and Kathryn's relationship seemed a bit absurd.

That made Darby laugh as she nudged Ashley. "See I told you, they had feelings for each other."

"And I told you that, that can't be the case because she's dating Eric now." Ashley defended her opinion. Of course she had seen how Kathryn and Daveed interacted but in the end she just wanted her friend to be happy and if that was dating someone who wasn't Daveed then it was by dating someone who wasn't Daveed.

He felt like his eyes bugged out of his head. She was dating Eric? Why hadn't she told him yet? When did this happen? He knew he should have kept an eye on the guy after seeing them work together during the last musical. At that moment Kathryn and Eric had come up to them, hand in hand confirming what Ashley had just said. "You guys are dating?" He asked, even though he felt like he sounded more accusing than curious.

Kathryn stopped in her tracks, her eyes wide. "How do you know? I was going to tell you later."

Ashley raised her hand, smiling a sheepish smile. "That would be my bad. I thought you had already told him because you two literally talk about everything."

"When did this happen?" Daveed asked, looking between Kathryn and Eric before focusing in on Kathryn. He was hurt that he didn't know, that she didn't tell him.

"A couple of weeks. It happen right around dress rehearsal starting and you know once those start life gets a little more hectic. I mean I haven't even talked to you recently because I was so busy between class work and rehearsal." Kathryn tried to make up for not telling him. "I was going to tell you when we got to the diner for milkshakes."

Daveed nodded, biting the inside of his cheek so he wouldn't say anything that would give his true emotions away. "Then let's get going then, yeah? Celebratory milkshakes are calling our names." He then started walking away and everyone was just staring at Kathryn to see what to do.

Kathryn let go of Eric's hand and raced after Daveed. She hurried her step so she could get in front of him, running right into his chest as she wrapped her arms around his torso, burying her head in his chest. Tears began to well up in her eyes. The thought of Daveed mad at her broke her heart. She would end things right there if that's what he wanted so that he wouldn't be mad. "Please don't be mad at me. I haven't seen you in months and I've missed you and I'm really sorry, Daveed, really, really sorry. I should have told you as soon as it happened. Please forgive me, please." She sniffled.

At the feel of her running right into him, he froze. Her words washed over him and he swore he felt tears wet his shirt, which was confirmed when he heard her sniffle. That sound broke his resolve. He looked up to the ceiling, sighed and soon engulfed her in his embrace. He placed his head on top of hers and wound his arms tightly around her. "I'm not mad, kitten. I was just shocked is all. Well, more like I realized that I can't look after ya, like in high school. He treating you right? No extravagant proclamations and giving you lilies?"

She smiled and nodded her head. They were going to be okay and that gave her so much relief. "Yeah, he's treating me right. Nothing like Nathan."

He placed a kiss on top of her head and gave her a squeeze before pulling back a little. "Good. You know I'm still gonna have to have a talk with him though, right?"

Kathryn laughed, nodding her head as she wiped away any remaining tears. "Yeah, I know."

Daveed nodded, grinning at her. "Good, now how about those milkshakes?"

The rest of the group had waited a moment before slowly following behind Kathryn as they took in the small scene in front of them. "I shouldn't be worried about him or her other friend, should I?" Eric asked as he watched Daveed hug Kathryn back.

"You really don't pay attention to how she talks about her friends, do you?" Darby asked, looking over at Eric with a raised eyebrow. "The only thing you have to worry about from Rafael is probably a black eye if you hurt her. Diggs on the other hand is a toss up."

Ashley rolled her eyes. "You don't have to scare the poor guy, Darbs. You'll be fine Eric. Kat isn't the cheating type."

"And you know this how?" Eric asked, genuinely curious even though he believed her.

"She was about ready to murder my ex last semester for cheating on me, so therefore, she wouldn't cheat." Ashley stated.

Eric nodded and Darby rolled her eyes. "Just because she wouldn't cheat doesn't mean that she can't break something off." Darby mumbled under her breath before they reached Daveed and Kathryn.

"So milkshakes?" Eric asked, holding out his arm for Kathryn to take, unknowingly repeating what Daveed had just asked her.

"Milkshakes." Kathryn nodded, taking his arm with a smile.

Rafael wanted to scream but he couldn't do that with his best friend still on the phone. Daveed had called him after Kathryn, Ashley, and Darby had gone to bed. They never did have anyone assigned to the spare room so Daveed was sleeping there for the weekend. Daveed had slipped out to the courtyard of the dormitory, leaving the main door cracked so he could get back into the suite. By the time he was done telling his story, Rafael was ready to pull out his hair. Looked like his prediction of them finally getting together after everything was not going to come true. "Diggs, she was practically coming over there every weekend last semester. Then you had the entire summer  _and_  you had the fall plays. Don't even get me started on all the opportunities you had the year before that and while we were still in high school. You two seriously could have been the love story of the century and been the poster children for a successful high school sweetheart couple."

"But she said she wouldn't even consider me until she was 35 and we both hadn't found anyone to love." Daveed whined.

"Kat did not say that. Hell, she didn't even imply it. If you told the girl how you felt then we wouldn't even be having this conversation. I'm telling you I know she likes you back but because she doesn't want to ruin anything and because she doesn't know for certain that you like her back, she's not done anything but be her supportive, sunshiney self. Now all you can do is be your supportive best friend self and wait to see what happens unless you're gonna turn into someone who's gonna ruin your best friend's relationships until you gather up the courage to tell her how you really feel." Rafael rolled his eyes.

"I'm not gonna do that to Kat. What I've seen of their interactions off stage, this won't be anything like her relationship with Nathan." Daveed conceded with a sigh.

"Then I guess you're just going to have to wait then, lover boy."


	8. viii

Rafael was right, Daveed had to wait. Year three, Kathryn spent the holidays with Eric and his family. She was in Oakland for the first part of the winter break but closer to Christmas, she left to head back towards the East Coast to spend it with Eric and his family. Eric was from a small town in Louisiana. He wished it was one of the ones where it was closer to New Orleans but it was not. It was one of the more conservative towns and with that came a whole lot of mindsets he didn't agree with and had to hide away from.

Eric was grateful that Kathryn had agreed to come visit over the break. She was able to celebrate Hanukkah with her aunt before flying to Louisiana to celebrate Christmas with him. He had warned her about how his family viewed their major but nothing really prepared her for their reaction.

"Eric, who is this pretty, young thing you've brought home? Surely you didn't pick her up at school. Does she know what you're studying?" His father said as he looked over at the two from his recliner.

"Actually he did. We're apart of the same major and he's fantastic. You should come and see him perform." Kathryn replied, crossing her arms across her chest. She had put up with this type of behavior for too long and she wasn't about to do it again.

Eric looked at her with wide eyes. What was she doing? No one talked back to his father. He didn't know if his heart could take anymore shock because his father began laughing. "You're dating a feisty one there Eric. Who knew? Liz! Come out here and meet Eric's girlfriend. It's a damn Christmas miracle."

Liz walked out into the living room, an apron was over the clothes she was wearing, covered in flour. "Oh, look at you. You are nothing like we expected. Eric, why don't you go ahead and take Kat up to the guest room so we can start on these cookies, hm?"

"Sure thing." Eric nodded, motioning for Kathryn to follow him.

"So your parents seem, uh, nice." She said as they made their way up the stairs.

That caused him to laugh. "Yeah, they're something. Sorry about what my dad said."

"Don't be." She waved him off. "It's nothing I haven't dealt with before. I'm sorry if I ruin these cookies though. I'm not the greatest ever."

"Then you'll be the decorator because I'm not having half burnt cookies." He teased her causing her to laugh.

"Deal." She said with a smile as she sat her bag down on the bed.

Kathryn and Eric sat around the kitchen table. Icing, sprinkles and other things for cookie decorating was set out around them. "So, Kat, why did you choose this musical theatre major? Are you really going to do something that you can support yourself on after school? Or are you doing this so you can go teach?" Liz asked as she rolled out some more dough.

The younger woman froze before rolling her eyes down at the gingerbread man she was currently decorating. "No, I'm not going to go teach after school. I am in this major because I want to perform, share my music, my art with people and inspire them. So many artist in music and all types of acting, have inspired me to be better, to believe in myself and I want to do that for someone else. I honestly can't see myself doing anything else."

"But surely you've got a backup plan." Liz said, shaking her head.

"Not really. I'm going to work towards my dreams with everything I have. Why have a backup plan when you haven't tried to work towards your first dream yet?" Kathryn shrugged, turning back to focus on her cookie.

"And that dream really includes my son?" She asked, still shocked that Eric had brought a girl home.

Kathryn had, had enough. She placed the sprinkle container back down on the table and looked over to Eric. He was still busying himself with decorating, not showing any signs that he was going to defend himself. She barely knew his parents, so she probably should have bitten her tongue to figure out something else to say but she just didn't seem to care. "What do you have against your son? Sure he may not have gone into business like you wanted him too but Eric is one of the most talented people I have ever met. When I left for college, I was leaving behind two of the best scene partners that I had, they also happen to be my best friends in the whole wide world but that's besides the point. Eric coming into my life allowed me to have someone to grow with, to learn from, and to feel safe around. I am miles away from home, even more so when we're at school. I'm on the opposite coast I grew up on and I know no one. Without Eric being his amazing self, I would be so lonely, not feel safe, and not be able to have someone who is willing to try different directions or takes on a scene. He's one of the best things that has ever happened to me and if you can't see how amazing he is, that's on you, not on me and certainly not on him."

Both Liz and Eric looked at her in awe. Eric because he had no idea that she felt that way about him and Liz because she wasn't used to talking back. Eric then turned to look at how his mother was taking in all that Kathryn had said. Liz was blinking, frozen in position of mid cookie cutting before she finally came to. "Well, alright then. I guess as long as he's happy and doing well then who are we to tell him what to do. You continue your courses. We may still not understand why but it lead you to a good woman so I won't keep asking you about it."

Eric was ecstatic. If his mom would stop, she could get his father to stop. He should have invited Kathryn over sooner if he knew the outcome was going to be finally being able to study in peace. He leaned over and placed a kiss to her cheek. Kathryn smiled and easily returned the kiss.

Eric was relieved that the questions stopped and that he could continue doing theatre without them. It was why he was so grateful he got along with Kathryn so well and that she was able to calm his family's questions. He was even more grateful that she even agreed to still come spend Christmas with his family when he knew that his parents were similar to hers.

It was over those next few days after she defended him that Kathryn realized just how much Eric really meant to her. She was even pretty sure that she had fallen in love and was very much in love with him. For Christmas, he had gotten her a star pendant necklace. He told her that she was his star, always shining light in the darkness and helping him get back home. It was then she knew that oh, yes, she was very much in love with Eric.

Darby didn't understand it and Ashley didn't mind it. The newest roommate was very much in agreeance with Rafael. To her Kathryn and Eric shared no more passion than when they played lovers on stage. It still felt very surface level unlike seeing her with Daveed. Ashley thought that Kathryn and Eric were the cutest couple. She made sure that Darby played along because in the end it was all about Kathryn's happiness.

While Kathryn was falling, Eric was becoming more and more aware that he was in fact who he thought he was. He loved Kathryn, he really did but she didn't excite him in the way that the other male track athletes did when he joined her to Daveed's meets. Matter of fact Kathryn and Daveed were celebrating his record setting run while Eric was looking after the other athletes wondering if what he was wearing was eye catching enough for one of them to notice.

Eric shook his head and returned his focus to Kathryn. He loved Kathryn. He couldn't hurt her. He had to figure out a way to tell her, yet he didn't want to. Kathryn was safe. She accepted him, was able to put up with his family and kept his family from disowning him.

With their senior year fastly approaching it was time to figure out what she wanted to do. The realization happened while they were in rehearsal for the spring musical, Les Miserables. This go around they played unrequited lovers in Eponine and Marius. While they rehearsed the scenes before the students came in, she and Eric were planning their future.

They were going to move to New York together after graduation. Darby and Ashley would be joining them so that they all could pursue their dreams. On top of auditioning for Broadway, they were going to breakout onto the music scene, with Darby landing a top disc jockey position so that she could always play their music.

In between rehearsal and class work, Kathryn had begun working on some tracks so she could put together a demo CD. She, Ashley, and Darby turned their spare room into a homemade recording studio. The three girls knew just enough that they could record vocals, piano, and guitar.

She loved performing in musicals, but she also loved performing as herself with her guitar or piano alongside Ashley. The summer before their final year, she stayed in Oakland, much to the pleasure of Daveed. While she trusted Eric, there was a deeper sense of trust between her, Rafael, and Daveed. What she was doing was so personal and nerve wracking that she needed her support system to help her get through completing her songs. She was her own worst critic and while the album was coming together, she always had to double and triple check with her boys to make sure it sounded okay; especially after Rafael taught her how to add drums in the software that she was using through her keyboard.

"Okay, give me this." Daveed said as he came back into the living room, reaching for Kathryn's guitar.

She did her best to try and keep it from him but ultimately he was able to take it away from her. He set the guitar in the chair that he was previously sitting in and then went back over to Kathryn. "Now, c'mon, let's go." He took her hands in his and pulled her up from the couch.

"Where are you taking me?" She asked as she followed behind him.

Before they left through the back door, he picked up two towels and placed them under his arm, one of his hands still wrapped around Kathryn's in fear that if he let her walk by herself that she would run back to the guitar.

As soon as she saw the towels, Kathryn immediately knew where Daveed was taking her. It started to become a thing with them when they would come home from university. If they were ever hanging out together and Daveed felt like she needed a break, he would take her out to her spot. Well, she didn't really consider it just hers anymore over the past few years it had really become their spot.

When they reached the dock, Daveed tossed the towels down and then sat down on the dock with his feet dangling over the edge. He tugged Kathryn down to sit next him and she sighed as she did so. Soon they were both taking off their shoes and swinging their feet back and forth above the water. "Thank you." Kathryn said after a few moments of silence.

Daveed smiled, still looking out onto the water. "You're welcome. You needed a break. Your songs are beautiful Kat. Anyone would be crazy not to sign you."

She sighed as she rested her head on his shoulder. "I just want them to be perfect, ya know? This will be the first time I'm showing the world me, not some character I'm portraying, but me and I'm so scared, Daveed. What if the world doesn't like just me?"

"Then the world is an even crazier place than what it currently is. They seriously would be a fool to let you slip through their fingers." Daveed wrapped an arm around her shoulders, bringing her closer to him, giving her a reassuring squeeze. She wrapped an arm around his waist and sighed, trying her best to believe the words that he had said. "I'm not gonna get a phone call from Eric when we get back am I? Cause I will drag your ass out of the recording studio if I need to."

This caused Kathryn to laugh. "No, you won't get a call from Eric."

"Then promise to text me when you go into the studio so I can call you a few hours later to make sure you're not beating yourself up over getting a take perfect." He looked over at her with a serious expression.

"I promise." Kathryn agreed.

"Good, now how 'bout a swim?" He asked, standing up, already taking off his shirt.

Kathryn quickly followed, standing up and taking off her shirt before shimmying out of her shorts. They tossed their clothing over where the towels were placed and backed up a little so they could have a running start. "Bet ya I can jump farther." She teased him with a big smile.

"Oh, we'll see about that." He smirked at her before taking off running.

Kathryn waited to see where he came back up at. It was certainly a manageable distance for her. While she didn't match Daveed in leg length, she thought she matched him in strength. Those dance classes she had been taking definitely built up her strength in her leg muscles so surely she could match the strength he built up for track. She might not be a record holding track star but she was a damn good dancer.

She backed up a little bit more to make up for their height difference. "You scared?!" Daveed taunted from the water. She took a deep breath and ran down the dock at full force before launching herself into the water. When she popped back up she was a few inches further than where Daveed was.

Laughter filled the air as she teased him about jumping further. That laughter turned into squeals as Daveed wrapped his arms around her, spinning her around. When things calmed down, Kathryn splashed him in retaliation and soon a splash war began. After one particular large splash, Kathryn took off swimming towards the dock. Despite Daveed chasing her and splashing her as he went, she climbed back onto the dock and yelled out, "truce!".

Daveed laughed and hopped back up onto the dock and held out his hand. "Truce, it is."

Kathryn cautiously took his hand and they wound up shaking hands to officially end the splash war. They each grabbed a towel and dried off before sitting back down, wrapped in their towels. "This is our last summer together, isn't it?" Daveed finally asked.

"Oh, don't say it like that. We're still gonna see each other. It's not like I'm leaving you or Rafa behind. The bay and I are just taking a little break is all. We need some time apart to heal our wounds." Kathryn explained, looking over at Daveed.

"So you won't forget about us while you're off becoming a star in New York?" What he really meant was that she wouldn't forget about him because if they lost contact he wouldn't know what he would do.

"I'm not going to forget my best friends in the whole wide world. I wouldn't know how to manage without you guys. It'll be just like how it is when you and I are off at school while Rafa stays here. Except I'll be on my own and you'll have Rafa to keep you company." She scooted closer to him so she could loop her arms around his and rest her head on his shoulder.

"You'll have Eric," Daveed mentioned, hoping she wouldn't notice the roll of his eyes, "Ashley and Darby, so you won't be completely alone."

"I may have them but the shenanigans I get into with them definitely don't compare to the trouble I get in when I'm hanging out with you or Rafa. It's not the same. I promise to call everyday and if something big comes up you'll be the first person I call, right after Kelly 'cause you know she'd kill me if I didn't tell her first." She laughed a little bit which caused Daveed to join in.

"I'll hold you to it, Kitty Kat." He smiled at her, giving her hands a squeeze.


	9. ix

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Getting to the end! I hope you all have enjoyed this story so far. Don't worry there's definitely more coming your way. Just a couple more chapters left of the college years before the next chapter. I can't wait to hear what you all think. Much love!

It seemed like Kathryn never left the dorm room once she got back to campus. The girls were able to keep the suite and even the spare bedroom. So they set up the recording studio once again and started working on her very first album. They spent hours each day working on it, even perfecting the songs they had recorded already. When Ashley came out to visit her and Darby over the summer, Rafael had showed them how to add drums to their songs without using a drummer. So when the weather ruined some plans, the girls began editing and adding drums. Now that they were all back on campus they were finishing their editing process and recording some new songs.

Darby served as the producer with Kathryn helping out. She and Darby were able to talk technically to make sure that everything sounded good. While when she was working with Ashley on the music, she would just get so excited each time she would hear their harmonies. Their voices just meshed so well together.

True to his word each time Kathryn texted him to let him know she was starting a session, Daveed would call a few hours later. This carried on for most of the semester. Kathryn wanted to finish the album before the spring semester since she knew that as soon as the musical started, it would take up most of her time.

"Daveed, I just have one more take to do. We're so close to being done!" Kathryn exclaimed. She wasn't lying this time either to try and get out of ending the recording session for the day. They were wrapping up on the final song for the album and the excitement was killing her.

"Kat, I'm sure it sounds great already. Take a break and come back to it tomorrow." Daveed tried to persuade her.

"No, Daveed, you don't understand. It's the final song. I just need one more take to fix a breathing thing and we'll be done. Like done, done. Like the album will be finished, complete, wrapped." Her excitement could be felt through the phone.

Daveed sighed. "You have one hour Kathryn Johnson and I'm calling you back."

"Thanks, Diggs!" She said before hanging up, too excited to even react to him using her full name. "Okay ladies, we got one hour so let's wrap this thing up!" Kathryn informed her friends.

It didn't even take them the full hour, they were done in twenty minutes. Everyone was lounging in the shared area of the suite, listening to each track as Darby was creating copies of the album for Kathryn to send out. After an hour had passed Daveed called once again. "You don't even have to yell at me. The album is complete and copies are being made as we speak!" Kathryn greeted.

"That's great Kat! I was worried I was going to have to come down there and drag you out myself." He chuckled. The people he was walking by probably thought him strange with how big he was smiling at the news of Kathryn being done with the album. He couldn't be prouder of his best friend.

"I'll get you a copy when we see each other next. I'm just going to go ahead and send it to Rafa though cause I don't think I can wait til the semester ends for me to know his opinion on it." Kathryn said, smiling just as wide. She couldn't be any happier that the album was finally finished.

"So when are you going to release it to the world?" He asked.

"I'm probably going to wait until after the holidays. It's Christmas music that's being released right now." She ran her fingers through her hair, a nervous habit of hers.

"You know, it's okay to be nervous, Kat. You hold on to that album until you're ready to show the world how awesome you are. I'm okay with being one of the few who know the truth for a little while longer." He tried to ease her nerves as best he could.

She laughed a bit at his slightly teasing words. "Thanks, Daveed."

"It's what I'm here for. Now go out and celebrate and we'll hold our own celebration when we see each other again. I can't wait for you to see this show, Kat. I think you're gonna really love this one." He smiled.

"I can't wait to see it either. I'll see ya soon!" She exclaimed, having Daveed repeat the sentiment before they both hung up.

After all the copies were made, Kathryn, Darby, Ashley, and Eric all went out to J's. Shots were poured and food was shared as the group celebrated the completion of Kathryn's first album. "So who are we gonna send it to first?" Eric asked.

"Rafa." Kathryn smiled, pleased with her answer. She was certainly feeling a bit more on the tipsy side of things.

"Does he know of some people that could get you signed?" Eric asked, confused as to why one of her friends was the first person she was going to send her new album to. He had meant record companies. He thought he made that clear when he asked her but then again they all had a few drinks and weren't thinking too clearly.

Kathryn shook her head. "Not that I know of but I'm gonna hold off until I get his and Daveed's opinion. Plus they'll actually make me send it off to places."

"You know you don't have to rely on them all the time." Eric said. "You're a strong, beautiful woman, who can do whatever she pleases."

"I know that. They've just been there for me through so much, ya know, so I want them there with me when I take the next big step. We've done that for all of us. Rafa tells it as it is. Daveed is the support and I'm the positivity." Kathryn smiled wide, thinking of her friends.

Eric chuckled and shook his head. He kind of understood why people had started rumors about the trio even though he hated that it happened to her. She spoke about Daveed and Rafael with the highest form of respect and admiration in her voice while he had never really heard the same tone used when she was with him and her friends at Trinity. "And what about your friends and boyfriend who you're currently with?" He asked, wanting to know the answer to the question he had been holding on to practically since he met her.

"They're all the best and stay around through the madness that is me." There was the tone she had used when speaking about Daveed and Rafael. Kathryn continued, describing each of her friends. "Darby keeps me grounded and," she brought her voice down to a whisper as she drunkenly revealed what she had thought about two of her best friends, "I think she and Rafa would make a cute couple."

She brought her voice back up to a normal level as she continued sharing what she thought of each of her friends. "Ashley completes me and makes for the best musical partner ever. She's like a mind reader and knows where I want to go with something before even I do. Then there's my handsome boyfriend who's the best onstage and off. Honestly I don't know how I would make it through this program without you by my side. I swear these professors are unnecessarily mean trying to prep us for the real world." She made air quotes with her fingers when she said real world. She then leaned up and pressed a quick kiss to his lips before settling back down against his side.

That made Eric happy. He placed a kiss on top of her head, holding her closer to him so they could share some warmth. He had always been secretly worried about the relationship between Kathryn and her two best friends from her hometown. He was worried that they would somehow be able to tell who he really was but so far Daveed had no clue and he had yet to officially meet Rafael despite having a few phone conversations with him when he would call Kathryn for their weekly check in. He had seemed to have gained the approval from both of her friends which apparently was a feat in and of itself.

The next day, Kathryn was lying with her head in Eric's lap as they listened to her cd in his dorm room. He was playing with her hair and giving her track by track feedback. When the song she titled Southern Eyes began playing, Kathryn's face turned as red as a tomato. It was the song she had written about Eric and their relationship. By the end of the song, Kathryn had covered her face with her hands.

Eric paused the cd and lowered Kathryn's hands from her face so she could see the large grin on his. "That was beautiful, Kat. I loved it. I think it captures us perfectly. Everyone's going to be jealous."

That made Kathryn laugh. Eric soon joined in and once their laughter died down they resituated themselves so that Eric could give her a long and loving kiss. Kathryn smiled into the kiss, bringing him closer so she could kiss him again and again. "There's a couple more songs for you to hear." Kathryn whispered, not wanting to exactly break their lazy kissing.

"I think it can wait a few more minutes." Eric replied as he kissed her once again.

He finally heard the final two songs after his roommate walked in on their peaceful afternoon. He gave his stamp of approval on the whole album and Kathryn couldn't be happier. The following week she nearly burst Rafael's ear drum from squealing with excitement when he gave her his verdict. "I knew it was going to be amazing before you got it all recorded. Just don't forget the little people when you make it big, alright?"

"Rafa, I could never forget you." Kathryn shook her head, not believing that her best friend would think she could ever forget him.

"Good. So when you and Diggs get back to the bay we're celebrating, right?" He asked.

"You know it!" She exclaimed.

Kathryn nearly knocked Daveed over in her excitement to his reaction. They both laughed as he caught her in his arms when she practically tackled him in a bear hug. "I don't know why you would have thought my reaction would have been any different, Kat. You're gonna be a star before all of us, I just know it."

"Oh hush. Your name's gonna be in lights before mine. Do you know how amazing you were in that play?! There wasn't a dry eye in that audience and you made that happen!" Kathryn exclaimed.

"How about we stop talking about how amazing we are and go get something to eat. I was introduced to this new restaurant and I think you're gonna love it." Daveed smiled, as he took Kathryn's hand and off they went to get dinner.


	10. x

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: This is the second to last chapter for this story! Don't worry though, more Daveed and Kat will be coming your way. Can't wait to hear what you all think. Much love!

The rest of the semester blew by and before she knew it Kathryn was standing in front of a mailbox with a handful of envelopes filled with her albums inside. Daveed and Rafael stood behind her saying encouraging words over and over again. This was just the start. When Kathryn returned to Connecticut she would personally hand deliver the albums to places all over. She took a deep breath and then opened the mailbox before placing the envelopes inside. When the door closed, she turned around and all three of them screamed in excitement. People passing by gave the trio weird looks as they watched them enter into a group hug.

"To Fenton's!" Rafael yelled when they pulled away from each other. Kathryn and Daveed echoed the phrase and soon they were all running to Kathryn's car so they could go celebrate with the best ice cream Oakland had to offer.

When Kathryn returned from winter break, she hit the ground running. For her final show she was doing Rent. She couldn't be more excited, especially when she found out that she was to be Mimi and Eric, Roger. The whole rehearsal process was so much fun despite the long and tiring hours the cast put in. While everyone got along, the main seven grew to become quite close and it showed. They all acted like they had been friends for a long time.

Kathryn was having fun in her role. Her character was different from who she was but they shared the same drive to just live life to its fullest. She loved the choreography she got to do and when Take Me Out was rehearsed she gave it her all. The chemistry between her and Eric sizzled when they were doing scenes together. They both wanted to go out with a bang. They even talked about celebrating their final show by taking a big step together in their relationship by going all the way.

Doing a show like Rent allowed Eric to explore what he had been keeping locked away for his whole life. He had a lot of fun with Kathryn. They both were performing at the best he's seen them do if he said so himself but the guy who was playing Angel was just amazing. Eric and Philip, the actor portraying Angel, grew close during the rehearsal process. Eric hated that he was going behind Kathryn's back but it felt so good to finally be himself. He knew that when he initiated the conversation about taking that next step with Kathryn, was his last attempt at seeing if he was really gay. He knew though that the time he spent with Philip gave him the answer he was looking for. It was freeing in a sense and he hoped that Kathryn would understand when he finally told her.

It was the final performance and Kathryn was already an emotional mess. Her aunt was out in the crowd with Daveed and Kelly had brought Rafael with her. Her original fan base was sitting out in the audience watching her act, dance, and sing her heart out. During intermission she couldn't be around anyone because after this show was over, it was essentially time to graduate and to say goodbye to her time here.

Despite her tears, she got through the second half of the show. No matter how many times they rehearsed it, Angel's death still always got to her. When it was her big moment towards the end she couldn't even look at Eric or she would be crying again and that wouldn't have been in character since she was supposed to be at peace with everything. All bets were off when it was time for the curtain call. She could have sworn that she heard Daveed and Rafael cheer and shout her name when she came out to take her bow. She let out a few choked back laughs that were mixed with sobs at being done with her college theatre career. She was just a plain and utter mess.

When the curtain fell, the entire cast just screamed in excitement since for most of the cast this was their last show together before they graduated. Hugs were given out as they all made their way to their dressing rooms to get out of costume to greet the people out in the audience. Kathryn took a little while longer so she could get herself together. She took her time getting out of costume and made sure to fix her makeup from all of her crying. When she thought herself put together, she packed her bag and went out to find Eric.

He usually waited just outside of the girl's dressing room but when he wasn't there, Kathryn looked down the hallway to see if he was somewhere else. He wasn't anywhere to be found so she headed towards the boy's dressing room. "Is Eric still in there?" She asked one of the guys that had recently come out.

The actor shook his head. "He went out already. I honestly thought he would have been with you by now. Great job tonight, by the way. Good luck with things after graduation."

Kathryn smiled. "Thanks, you were stellar tonight as well." She replied back with a wave as he made his way out to the main lobby.

She couldn't help but to wonder where Eric was but she just shrugged it off. He had said some of his friends were in the audience tonight and she figured he was already out in the lobby talking with them. Before she went out there herself, she wanted to say goodbye to the stage that had given her so much and had allowed her to grow as an artist. It was quite sappy, she knew, but she did the same with her high school auditorium.

She was making her way through the stage right wing when she saw that she wasn't the only person still hanging around. The two people were locked in a rather passionate embrace and when one pulled back for air she saw that one of them was Eric. Kathryn gasped, frozen in her spot. The noise brought attention to her and the two men turned to face her. The person Eric had been kissing was Philip. She was shocked and didn't know how to react.

Eric couldn't believe that they had been caught. He was so sure that most people would have gone out to mingle with the audience by now. When he saw that it was Kathryn who had caught them, guilt began to eat him up and it was written all over his face. This was not how he wanted Kathryn to find out. He pulled away from Philip and made his way over to where Kathryn still stood. Philip looked between the two lovers and gave Eric's arm a reassuring squeeze before slipping out. If Eric wanted to continue whatever this was, he had his number.

Tears made their way back down her cheeks. How could this happen? What exactly was happening? She needed answers. "Kitty Kat," Eric started, trying to start his apology and explanation but she cut him off. "You don't get to call me that anymore."

Eric sighed as he looked down at his feet. He wanted nothing more to reach out to her, but she flinched away when she noticed his arms raising to place his hands on her arms. "Kat, I have been lying to you and to myself for a long time and I am so sorry it had to be like this where I had to tell you the truth." There was a long pause as he gathered his courage to say the words he had yet to say out loud. Kathryn was about to say something but he held out his hand to stop her. "I'm gay, Kat. I have been for as long as I can remember."

She didn't know how to respond. So far her dating track record was not looking so good. Her first relationship was a joke and now her second relationship that she felt so good about was built entirely on lies. "So you mean to tell me that nothing between us was real?" She finally asked.

"No, it was. I love you so much Kat but it's not a romantic type of love. I still believe in you and think you're one of the greatest performers I've seen..." He trailed off, not entirely sure where he was going with his thought. Maybe he was trying to get her to not hate him so much.

"I don't think that really matters anymore, though. I don't know what was real and what wasn't. You used me, Eric." She sniffled, wiping away her tears.

"I never meant to hurt ya, Kat. I was going to tell you. I really was."

"You being gay, didn't hurt me Eric. I don't care about that. What I care about is that you didn't trust me enough to tell me. You know I would have gone to your parents with you willingly if you had told me. Hell, I would have gone to help you come out to them when you were ready. That's what friends do Eric, they help each other. They don't make the other believe that they may have actually found a good relationship. You passed the Rafa and Daveed test, Eric. Do you know how hard that is? After you did that, I knew we must of had something special." She shook her head and wiped her nose with her sleeve before she reached up to take off the necklace he had given her their first Christmas together.

"We still do, Kat. We still can." Eric pleaded. He didn't want to lose her but as he watched her back up and remove the necklace he had given her, he knew he had just lost a true friend.

"I don't think that's possible anymore. I hope you have a good life, Eric and good luck with whatever you have planned for the future." With that she gave him the necklace back and turned on her heel before making her way out to the lobby.

She waved to a few of her friends and was stopped a couple of times by random people and professors that wanted to compliment her on her performance. When she was finally able to get to where her aunt, Daveed and Rafael were standing, she dropped her bag and went straight to Rafael. She knew that if she went anywhere near Daveed right now she would break down. She was barely keeping herself together as it was. "I am so happy you came!" She exclaimed, her words muffled by Rafael's chest.

He wrapped his arms tightly around her, swaying her from side to side. "Girl, you killed it up there! I didn't know you could be so hot. You had me and Diggs crying like babies."

Kathryn laughed. "Man, I wish I could have seen that." She teased him as she pulled back from his embrace.

She then moved to her aunt and gave her a big hug. "I'm so proud of you, baby. You did so good. You definitely went out with a bang like you wanted."

Kathryn began to sniffle at her aunt's words. "You're the best Aunt Kelly and thanks for bringing Rafa with you."

"I don't think he would have let me leave without him." Kelly quipped causing everyone to laugh.

Kathryn pulled away and then turned towards Daveed. He held out his arms and gave her a wide smile, expecting her to practically tackle him as she usually did. She hated that despite him not knowing she was going through heartbreak that a single movement could break down her last reserve to hold back her tears. She immediately went into his embrace and buried her head into his chest so that no one could see her crying while also hoping that it would muffle her sobs.

She wrapped her arms tightly around his middle as his arms came around her, engulfing her in his embrace. Her shoulders shook with the sobs she was trying so hard to get control of. "Hey, those don't sound like happy tears. What's wrong?" He whispered, bringing his head down to rest on top of hers so his lips would be closer to her ear and so he could further hide her from everyone's stares.

Kathryn shook her head, not wanting to talk about it in front of the entire lobby full of people. Daveed looked back towards Kelly and Rafael. "Let's head to Queen Bee's. Kat will ride with me if that's alright." He suggested.

Kelly nodded, figuring that it was last show blues getting her niece down. "You okay with continuing to hang out with an old lady?" She asked Rafael.

He turned from giving Daveed a worried look. He wanted to know what was going on with his best friend. He gave Kelly a dazzling smile. "I couldn't tell you apart from all these other beautiful, young women walking these halls. I could never get tired of hanging out with you."

Kelly rolled her eyes and nudged Rafael forward, giving Daveed and Kathryn space. Kathryn sniffled, turning her head slightly so she could wipe away her tears. Daveed soon replaced her hands with his as he took over wiping away her tears. "What happened, kitten?"

"Eric and I broke up." Her voice broke even when she tried to hold it together.

He looked down at her shocked but then out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Eric coming over. "Let's talk about it on the way over to Queen Bee's, yeah?"

Kathryn nodded as she pulled back from his embrace. He kept her tucked into his side as they made their way to his car. Eric stopped in his tracks at Daveed's glare he sent over Kathryn's head. One last attempt at an apology and to clear things up was not going to happen tonight. He finally saw how truly protective Daveed was of Kathryn too and Kathryn definitely did not over exaggerate like he had originally thought.

"I shouldn't even be this upset. I was the one who technically called it off." Kathryn said once they were outside.

"Well, what happened? I thought you two were happy." Daveed asked.

"Yeah, I did too until I found out he was using me for the past three years." Kathryn rolled her eyes.

"He what?!" Daveed gripped the steering wheel, doing his best to control his anger.

"I was unknowingly Eric's beard for the last three years." Kathryn began to laugh. She honestly still didn't know how to feel about the whole thing. The only thing she could possibly relate this too was Will and Grace and she was quite certain that, that type of scenario was not going to be the outcome of her current situation. "That's not even the worst part to me though. It's the fact that he didn't trust me, ya know? He clearly thought I was good enough to show off to his parents and we were pretty good friends even before he asked me out."

Daveed was trying to wrap his head around what she had just told him. "So you mean to tell me your first serious boyfriend is gay?"

Kathryn laughed again as she nodded her head. "I was dating a gay man for three years." As a realization hit her she reached over and smacked Daveed on the arm. "Oh my god, I was going to sleep with a gay man." She doubled over in laughter.

"You were what?" Daveed asked, shocked to hear her confession.

"We were going to celebrate our last show by sleeping together but that's clearly not going to happen now. Maybe he'll get to celebrate with Philip cause based on what I walked in on they clearly have the hots for each other." Kathryn shrugged.

"You walked in on them?" Daveed asked while he pulled into a parking spot.

"Yeah, that's how I found out. They were seriously going at it backstage." Kathryn unbuckled her seat belt, ready to head inside to celebrate with her friends.

Daveed reached across and took her hand to stop her from getting out. "Hey, in all seriousness, are you gonna be okay? Someone you loved just lied to you and I know how much trust means to you."

She gave his hand a squeeze and a reassuring smile. While she still wasn't entirely sure what she was feeling, telling Daveed about what happened allowed her to process through some of her emotions and it calmed her down. "You know, I honestly think I will be. The scene he and I have for our final is pretty much me yelling at him so that'll be nice. Other than that I just gotta rethink my plan for after I graduate."

Daveed nodded and placed a kiss on her cheek. "You know you always have a home in the Bay."

Kathryn smiled, returning the kiss with one of her own. "Yeah, I know. Let's go eat though. I don't want to think about that right now." They both then got out of the car and walked into the restaurant, Kathryn tucked into Daveed's side.

"There you guys are! I was about to send out a search party." Rafael flagged his two friends over.

Kathryn laughed as she slid into the booth next to him. She knew he was worried about her and wanted to ease his worries. Rafael grinned towards Daveed who rolled his eyes as he slid into the booth, sitting next to Kelly. Kathryn rested her head on Rafael's shoulder as he draped an arm across hers. "Everything alright, Kit Kat?"

She nodded. "Yeah, just found out my boyfriend was swinging for the other team is all."

"Eric's gay?" Rafael asked, looking down at her with wide eyes.

"Sure is, but enough about my failed relationship," she said as she sat up straight, stealing his menu, "let's order. I'm feeling cheese fries and a brownie sundae." She finished as she looked over the menu.

Kelly reached over and took her niece's hand. Kathryn looked up and flashed a smile towards her aunt. "I'll be alright, Aunt Kelly. We'll talk about it later, okay?"

"Okay, I just wanted to make sure you were doing okay." She returned her niece's smile. "So cheese fries and a brownie sundae?"  
  
"Yup, so what are you guys gonna get?" Kathryn asked looking around the table. Despite everything she just completed an amazing show and was now surrounded by her favorite people in the universe. Things were going to be just fine.


	11. xi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: We have reached the end of Trust In Me! I hope you have enjoyed this part of the series. The next book is called Congratulations and will be out as soon as I get things together. As with most of this series, most of it is written. I just have to add a few more scenes here and there. I will also let everyone know when it is posted. For now enjoy this last chapter and I can't wait to hear what you all think! Much love!

"Uh oh, ex boyfriend coming in at your three o'clock." Ashley whispered to Kathryn as they took yet another picture together. Her parents along with Kathryn's aunt were being relentless about pictures.

Kathryn sighed. Ever since she and Eric broke up, he was trying everything to try and talk to her more. The following Monday after the break up, Kathryn had brought him a small box of all of the things he had given her to their class they shared. It shocked everyone in their class but she didn't care. She had burned all of the pictures and other memories she had after Daveed, Rafael, and her aunt had left.

She only ever talked to him about school work and sometimes she wondered if she was being too harsh. She never let up though. She was still friendly towards him in class, still completed all of their assignments together but the minute he started to steer the conversation away from the task at hand, she brought it back to their school work.

"Why he doesn't get that I'm not ready to talk about everything will always surprise me. He was so good at reading cues for scenes." She whispered before turning to face Eric. "Congratulations." She greeted him with a grin.

"Thanks," he smiled, "you too. I was wondering actually if you had a minute to talk?" He looked hopeful. She hadn't run away when he was quite certain Ashley had warned her of his intrusion on picture taking.

"I actually got to get back to the paparazzi that's followed me out here to make sure they get all my best angles, so..." She trailed off as she pointed behind her. She bit her lower lip, hoping that he would just leave.

He nodded. There went his hope. Maybe he would never be able to really talk to her ever again. "Right, of course. I just wanted to tell you congratulations and that I hope New York will be as kind to you as London is being to me." He had landed a role in a small independent film over in the UK and he was pretty excited about it.

Kathryn gave him a genuine smile. She had heard talk among the other students and with his confirmation, she couldn't help but to be really happy for him. "I hope so too." She then sighed and took a step towards him. He was about to head across the ocean while she and her current roommates were just moving a few hours away from their current location. She could have a sort of conversation about what went wrong with them before they went their separate paths. "Eric, I just want you to know that I've always wanted nothing more for you than for you to be happy. Sure I was hurt when it became clear that I'm not apart of that but that's not the reason why I haven't really talked to you until now."

Eric began to open his mouth to say something but she raised her hand to get him to stop. "Let me finish. The reason why I didn't talk with you about this was because I didn't know how. I'm not really sure if I do now. What I do know is that I hate with every fiber of my being that you thought you couldn't tell me something so important to who you are. Like I'm so happy that you finally feel comfortable enough to finally let that part of you out of the dark. I just wish I could have been your wingwoman instead of the person you hid behind. I'll be watching from the bleachers, though, as you take the world by storm because you're so talented it's not even funny and I'm so glad that we got to work together, it's just going to take some more time on my part. We'll laugh about this one day, I'm sure of it. It'll just be when we're both at the Oscars, laughing over martinis with our awards next to us, laughing over how we used to date and how I didn't suspect anything until I caught you with Phillip." She smiled and gave a small shrug. "For now, I wish you all the best but I've really got to get back to my family so we can make it to Rhode Island in time for Daveed's graduation."

She stuck out her hand and he took it with a small smile. He gave it a small shake before heading back to where Philip was waiting for him. He would take everything that he could get right now and he hoped that one day they could be friends again. Kathryn let out a deep breath before turning back. "To Rhode Island!" She shouted, raising her arm and pointing forward before heading to the parking lot Kelly had said she parked the car.

After Daveed's graduation, after all of the pictures were taken, and after the big dinner that celebrated the accomplishments of all of the students, Daveed and Kathryn stood facing each other in front of the car that Kelly and Barbra had rented. This was the moment both of them were dreading. Daveed was headed back to Oakland while Kathryn was headed to Ashley's house along with Darby until they found themselves an apartment in New York.

"Don't look at me with those eyes, Daveed Diggs." She threatened as she felt the tears begin to pool in her eyes.

"I'm not looking at you with any sort of eyes." He defended but it was pretty clear that his statement was a lie. His eyes held all of the words he wasn't saying. Don't go. Come back with me. I'm going to miss you even more than I did at school. This feels like I'm never going to see you again. I love you.

She only latched onto one of those emotions because it was the one that was weighing on her heart the heaviest in that moment too. "I'm going to miss you too, ya know. I'll call all the time. It just might be a little while before I see you again but that doesn't mean that I'm not gonna see you again. You can't get rid of me that easily."

He pulled her in for a hug, holding her to him. The minute his arms wrapped around her, her tears spilled over and she swore she felt her dress sleeves get wet from his own tears. They held onto each other for a few long moments. It was as if they let each other go, they would disappear. "God, I'm going to miss you. It's just not going to be the same without you." He mumbled into her neck breaking the silence they were sharing.

"You and Rafa will be just fine without me. It's not like you can't call me either." She held onto him as tight as she could. She knew that this was going to be hard but she didn't expect it to be this hard.

There was so much more that he wanted to say but instead he said, "Ashley and Darby better take care of you or we'll have some issues." He pulled back a bit, moving his hand up to dry her tears, and smiled down at her as he tried to lighten the mood.

She chuckled, moving her hand up to do the same. "They took care of me for the past four years. I think they'll be able to do so in New York."

"I want constant updates." He told her, completely serious.

"And you will get them." She agreed with a small smile.

He nodded, not being able to say much more without giving himself away. He gave her one last hug before pulling back and placing a lingering kiss to her forehead.

Kathryn stood on her tip toes and pressed a kiss to his cheek. She stood there a few seconds longer than a normal peck to the cheek but it said the things she didn't have the courage to say. I wish I felt like I could come back. I wish you could come with me. I don't think you understand just how much I'm really going to miss you. You're making me question if I really should go. I love you.

They shared in one last hug before going their separate ways. Daveed got into the car that his mom, Rafael, and Kelly were sitting in while Kathryn got into the car that Ashley's parents, Ashley and Darby were waiting in. If this was a movie, both Kathryn and Daveed would yell stop the car before jumping out and running towards each other, proclaiming the love they felt for each other. Alas, this was real life and a few months later Kathryn, Ashley, and Darby were staring up at their new apartment building, buzzing with the excitement and the fear of the unknown but trusting that this was their start to their new adventure.

**Author's Note:**

> Rachel Platten is Kat  
> Deborah Joy Winans is Ashley  
> Colbie Smulders is Darby  
> Ben Whishaw is Eric
> 
> You will meet the other two in later chapters.


End file.
